


Perplexity: Original

by CLynnB



Series: Reincarnation is a Tricky Business [1]
Category: Power Rangers Ninja Storm
Genre: Angst, Brotherly Love, Cam and Hunter are stupid, Gen, Hunter is Big Brother, Hurt/Comfort, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, It's an ongoing theme, Like weird werewolf identity issues, Reincarnation is a tricky business, So old, Sometimes things go wrong, The Rangers are confused, Wolves, and maybe a little too smart too, this is so
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-10-07
Updated: 2019-10-07
Packaged: 2020-11-27 02:48:20
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 21
Words: 33,490
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20941031
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/CLynnB/pseuds/CLynnB
Summary: Hunter and Cam met long before they were Rangers. Long, long before. Reincarnation is a tricky business, and sometimes grudges hold over generations. And lifetimes. But that's okay, because they'll figure it out. Eventually.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> This story is in the process of being rewritten. Slowly. Ever so slowly. So the next story in this series is just this exact same story, only better written. However, I'm a terrible person that doesn't update regularly or often, so I figured I'd post the finished version here as well so you wouldn't have to go and find it over on Fanfiction.net.

"Yo! Blake!" Hunter called across the store. "Have a moment?" he asked. Blake shrugged and walked over, helping Hunter put up a display.

"Why'd you need help with that?" Blake asked, once they were done. Hunter gave a rare grin and placed his younger brother in a head lock.

"I didn't," he replied, ruffling his brother's hair. Blake squirmed out of his grasp and glared evilly at the crimson ranger. Hunter only smirked in reply. And then he frowned as a lady walked into the store.

It wasn't exactly the fact that the lady had walked in; it was the fact that she hadn't opened the door to do so. She had walked through it. Her dress style was odd as well, almost looking as though it were from an ancient Japanese warrior. Hunter closed his eyes, rubbing at them with the heels of his hands.

"Hey…Hunter? Are you alright?" Blake asked. Hunter opened his eyes, noticing that the lady was gone and that his brother was looking at him worriedly. He took a deep breath and forced a smile.

"Yeah, I'm fine," he muttered. "Just need a little more sleep I guess." For a moment Blake just continued to stare at him and then with a shrug, he turned away, heading for the counter. Hunter turned back to the display, startled to find his ghost-lady standing in front of him. She smiled at him, little more than a smirk and then her mouth was by his ear.

"The wolves will die." It was little more than a breath of a whisper and Hunter took a step back, confused. But the lady was gone. And a sharp pain ripped through his side, driving him to his knees with a pained cry. Blake was at his side in an instant, his hands on his brother's shoulders.

"Hunter! What the heck is wrong with you?" the navy ranger demanded of his brother. Hunter looked up at him, giving him a tightlipped smile and ignoring the fact that the blood from his injured side, although unseen against his crimson shirt, was threatening to leak from beneath his hand.

"I'm fine…just an injury I got in a motocross accident…" The worried look didn't leave Blake's face. "Fine. Listen, I'll go and have Cam look at it, if that will make you happy. I have to talk to him anyway," he muttered. Blake sighed and nodded, helping Hunter to his feet.

"What's going on?" Kelly asked, having come out of the back room. "Are you alright Hunter?" Hunter glanced at her over his shoulder and gave her the same tightlipped smile he had given his brother.

"Yeah, I'm fine." Shane walked through the door and gave the four of them a curious glance, his greeting dying at the sight of Hunter's obvious pain. "Hey, I'm leaving now. If you need anything, just ask Shane to do it." And then Hunter was walking out the door.

For a moment, there was no sound, a complete silence filling the room. And then Shane muttered, "Hey…I don't work here…"

"Aren't you supposed to be at Storm Chargers?" Cam asked as Hunter entered the room. He turned from his computer and gave the crimson ranger a curious glance, noticing the way one hand covered his side, and the fact that he was leaning heavily against the wall. "Are you okay?"

"Hey, Cam?" Hunter asked. "When you see something that no one else can see, that's hallucinating, right?" There was a pause.

"Yes. Why?" Hunter just nodded, seemingly lost in thought. "You've been hallucinating?" Cam asked.

"Maybe," Hunter answered. "But hallucinations usually don't hurt…" He let his bloodstained hand drop to his side, the injury showing. Cam was on his feet and at the ranger's side almost instantaneously. The samurai probed at the wound gently, and then caught Hunter's hands as the said thunder ranger swiped at him.

"That hurt," Hunter gasped, letting his head fall back against the wall. Cam kept his hold on his comrade's hands. With his free hand he unbuttoned Hunter's crimson shirt and forced the ranger's hands against his chest. Hunter didn't even bother glancing at him.

"Whatever this hallucination of yours stabbed you with, is still in you and I've really got to get it out." Hunter didn't comment, but Cam felt his breathing hitch as his fingers probed deeper into the injury. "Did it say anything to you?" Cam asked, his fingers brushing metal. Hunter gave a short nod. "Found it," the samurai muttered, grasping the metal between two fingers. Hunter gave a sharp moan, his eyes closing against the pain.

"Okay…I know you two are friends and all…but this is taking friendship to a whole new level," Dustin's voice said from behind the two of them.

"Shut up," Cam said without missing a beat and pulling the star shaped metal from the crimson ranger's side. "What'd it say?" Cam whispered.

"The wolves will die," Hunter muttered before his knees buckled and he fell to the ground, doubling over with a groan. Cam blinked and then knelt down next to him, looking over his shoulder at Dustin.

"If you're just going to stand there then at least make yourself useful and hand me the first-aid kit." There was a pause and then Dustin did as he was told. The yellow earth ranger crouched next to the two of them as Cam bound the wound and handed Hunter some pain killers, which he swallowed without the aid of any water.

"Dude, what happened to you?" Dustin asked, helping Hunter to his feet as Cam put the kit away.

"Nothing…just a bike accident." He looked pointedly at Cam who paused before nodding. Hunter rubbed at his eyes and laid down on the couch, falling asleep almost instantly. Dustin looked at him curiously and then moved his gaze to Cam.

"Dude, what did you give him?" he asked. Cam smirked and sat down at his computer.

"Some aspirin…and some sleeping pills…" Dustin said nothing, only shook his head slightly and left. "Finally…some time to try and figure out what the heck he meant," Cam muttered to himself.

"What who meant?" Blake asked, giving his brother a curious look as he walked into the room. Cam sighed and turned to face him.

"Oh, nobody," he answered. Blake sat down on the couch, Hunter behind him. The navy ranger leaned back, resting his arm on his brother's shoulder. "He'll be fine," Cam reassured him, noticing the worried look on Blake's face. "Bike accident right?" There was a nod. "Makes sense. The injury look like it had been half-healed but then opened up again. Nothing to worry about." He turned back to his computer.

"Whatcha lookin' for?" Tori asked as she too came into the room. Cam shrugged and then sighed.

"I don't know…something I guess…"

"You're always looking for something," she replied. She glanced at Blake. "You want to spar?" she asked, not bothering to ask what was wrong with Hunter, having overheard earlier. He nodded and stood up, following her outside.

Cam, once again, turned back to his computer. There had to be something about wolves right? Because why else would a so-called hallucination say that they—meaning the wolves—would all die? And why would it then attack Hunter? With a shuriken for that matter? He sighed, rubbing at his eyes. None of this was making any sense.

The next day the entire group of rangers met in front of Ninja Ops. Cam was there waiting for them, relaying the message that they were supposed to train against each other. Shane gave him an odd look.

"Dude, what's with that cut on your cheek?" he asked, motioning to the thin red line that traced Cam's cheek. Cam shrugged.

"Bad time with some kelzaks…" The others just shrugged and walked past him, but he held out his arm when Hunter neared him, stopping the crimson ranger from continuing.

"The wolves will die," Cam whispered, touching his cheek softly. Hunter just gave him a knowing look and a shrug.

"It doesn't make any sense," the thunder ranger muttered. Cam nodded and then got into a fighting stance, followed by Hunter.

"It will eventually, I'm sure." Hunter sighed.

"That's what I'm afraid of…"


	2. Chapter 2

"Have you noticed how well…protective Hunter and Cam are of each other suddenly?" Shane quietly asked Tori, Dustin and Blake as they watched the two afore mentioned rangers hold a near-silent conversation. Blake shrugged.

"Yeah," he muttered and then paused. "But they also seem to get rather upset if one imposes on their…their territory, with lack of better words." Dustin bit back a laugh.

"Dude! I've seen Cam agitated to the point of growling! That was something, and it was only because Hunter was too close to his computer!" Blake shook his head slowly.

"And Hunter gets upset if Cam comes too close to me, for crying out loud…" There was another pause in which they noticed both Hunter and Cam glance in opposite directions, frowns marring their faces.

"Well, there's something going on between those two, and I don't think they're going to let us in on the secret anytime soon…" His sentence died off as the other two rangers came to join them.

The group of six was at the beach, in a small alcove that was almost always free of people, and often used for training. They hadn't come to train, however, but to relax. Unfortunately, Cam and Hunter hardly found relaxing something that they weren't doing.

The poachers—as they had become to call them—hadn't quit in their hunt of the two teens. For the past two weeks, both the samurai and the thunder ranger had found themselves fighting, not only Lothor's monsters, but the poachers as well. And not only that, but they couldn't tell the others of their predicament…because they couldn't see their enemies.

And the wolves…

It was all about the wolves. "The wolves will die." That was their only clue towards their enemies' motives. But it didn't make any sense and it was frustrating Hunter and Cam almost to the point where they wanted to tear out their hair. Not that they would though…

Even now, they were watching… Two small groups, watching from either side of the beach. It was unnerving…but they weren't attacking.

The others had all started up another conversation, including the two usually sarcastic/silent boys. Cam paused and looked over his shoulder in the middle of answering a question and then looked back at the others.

"Did you see something?" he asked Shane, who shook his head. Cam sighed. "Well I did…I'm going to go and check it out…"

"Come on, Cam, we're here to relax, not worry about what Lothor's up to," Tori complained from her seated position on the sand. Cam turned around to face her, walking backwards a little.

"Lothor hasn't attacked for nearly a week…tell me that isn't something to worry about," he retorted. There were pauses and then shrugs and Cam left the group.

"I'm confused…" Dustin said after a moment. Hunter raised one eyebrow.

"And that's new?" he asked. The yellow ranger turned to give him a half-glare.

"It's just that…Cam didn't seem like he was too worried about Lothor… It's more like there's something else bothering him," he said. Tori raised her eyebrows, looking at the biker in surprise.

"And the airhead figured this out on his own? Wow…" Dustin decided to ignore this comment, noticing that Hunter was frowning and looking in the direction Cam had gone. "I think your right," Tori said after a moment. "And I think Hunter here can tell us what the heck is going on."

"Ah," Hunter said, returning his attention to the group and raising one finger. "It seems you are wrong there…" He paused. "I have no idea…"

"You realize I can tell when you are lying?" Blake asked, giving his older brother a bland look. Hunter gave a guilty grin.

"Yup…but hey, a promise is a promise, and I can't tell any of you a thing." There was no comment before Blake decided to speak.

"But, bro, you are going to tell us eventually, right?" he asked. Hunter's frown returned and he glanced over into the woods again.

"Yeah…as soon as we figure this out for ourselves…" he muttered. Blake frowned, along with the others. "Are you sure you can't see anything?" he quietly asked Shane, who was standing next to him. Shane shook his head, giving him a funny look.

"There's nothing there," he replied. But there was. A poacher had just materialized out of the trees, smiling cockily. Hunter shook his head with a sigh.

"I'm going to go and see if Cam needs any help," he murmured before running off. The others all watched him disappear into the trees with shocked expressions.

"Well…" Tori said quietly. "At least we know that something is going on…"

"Yeah, but what?" Blake asked. Nobody answered…but he really hadn't been expecting an answer anyway.

Hunter passed through the woods quickly, not streaking, but just running. He passed a few poachers, taking the time to take them out, and then continued his search for his comrade. He found him pinned beneath a rather large poacher, who had his hands around the samurai's neck. Simply put, Cam was being strangled, and it was obvious that he wouldn't be able to take much more.

Hunter slammed into the poacher, knocking him aside, and Cam, now free, rolled onto his side gasping for air. The poacher grinned at Hunter who had taken a rather protective stance in front of the green ranger.

"Until next time wolf," the ghost-like person said and then he vanished. Hunter immediantly turned around and knelt next to Cam who was still struggling to breath. Helping him into a seated position he stroked the samurai's throat.

"Shh…relax and take deep breaths. Come on Cam, breath," he instructed, looking Cam over again. The samurai shouldn't have fallen so easily, and then he saw what had made him fall. There was a long, deep cut running the length of his calf. He grimaced. "That doesn't look good," he muttered, noticing that Cam's breathing had steadied.

"Why are we the only ones that see them?" Cam whispered. Hunter shrugged, placing a finger under Cam's chin and turning his head to one side to see the ugly, dark ring of bruises that was forming around his throat.

"Apparently we're the wolves their talking about…If I got the meaning right," he muttered in return. Cam closed his eyes, leaning back against the tree behind him.

"It doesn't make any sense," he muttered with a wince. Hunter sighed and looked back at Cam's injured leg, noticing just how much blood the ranger must have lost.

"I don't think it's supposed to make sense," a feminine voice behind him said gently. Hunter spun around and Cam suddenly perked up in full attention, but they were both surprised to see a lady with long blonde hair and a full white dress standing in front of them. And she seemed to be glowing…

"Who…?" Hunter's question died on his lips as the lady smiled. For some reason he felt completely safe around her, and the look of pain had left Cam's face.

"I am Ohkami," she answered. "The goddess of wolves." She looked around her at the woods. "And you two are my children."

"What?" However, as safe as they felt, they were still rather confused. The lady—Ohkami—laughed, the sound like soft spring rain.

"Reincarnation is a fickle thing, my son," she replied lovingly. "One often forgets who he had been before. And it is the first time you have ever been reborn as humans. Why I do not know, but…" she paused, looking behind her. "Please, my time here grows short. Just know that the Ashnazi will do anything to kill you. Please be safe my sons. I cannot help you…" The light around her flickered and then she disappeared entirely.

Cam gave a groan and nearly fell against Hunter, who caught his arm while still looking at the spot Ohkami had previously stood. "Do you suddenly feel as though you could change into a wolf?" Hunter asked in a hushed whisper. Cam gave a tense nod and then promptly passed out.

Hunter looked down at him, surprised, and then looked up again to meet the gaze of a monster…one of Lothor's minions. He involuntarily winced. Standing up him pulled out his morpher.

"Thunder Storm, Ranger Form! Ha!"

"Did you feel that?" Dustin asked the others. They all nodded, looking towards the trees.

"It's been nearly fifteen minutes since Hunter ran off," Blake commented. There was another wave of energy…and it felt unmistakably like on of Lothor's friends.

"And that's our cue to go," Tori said. They all morphed and streaked through the trees. What they found caused them to stop in shock.

The Crimson Thunder Ranger stood over Cam, who was sprawled unconscious on the ground. And Hunter was faring quite well for not having moved at all. Cam, though, was rather pale, and his breathing was a little harsh. Not to mention the dark purplish-blue bruises on his throat and neck.

"What the heck happened to ya'll?" Shane asked, running over to help. Hunter didn't answer, only waved his staff in the direction of the monster, one calling itself Yoko…and it looked like a beet. Shane gave it an odd look, and then gave Hunter the same look, although it couldn't be seen behind the helmet.

"That did that to Cam?" There was a pause and then Hunter shook his head. "And you can't tell me what did, can you?" Shane asked again, quieter this time as the other three took on the monster. There was another pause and Hunter nodded.

"I'm sorry," he said softly. Shane didn't say anything, only turned to kick a few kelzaks that had suddenly appeared out of the way.

It didn't take long for Yoko to be destroyed, and this time there was no scroll, and no giant monster, much to the relief of everyone.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Holy cow, I hadn't realized that this was originally written fourteen years ago. It doesn't feel like that long. Holy crap.


	3. Chapter 3

Cam was asleep, Hunter had left. The other rangers all milled around Ninja Ops in complete confusion. Shane was on the couch reading a magazine that he had already read at least twice. Blake was pacing, Dustin sat staring at the wall, and Tori was seated on the steps, chin in hand.

"Okay," Shane said at last, startling the others. "We know for a fact that something is going on, Hunter even said that."

"But he also said that he wasn't allowed to tell us," Tori commented. "I don't think we should pry."

"Oh, come on Tor," Dustin moaned. "Aren't you just a little bit curious?"

"Of course she is, but if you know what's good for you, you'll stay out of other people's business," Cam said from the doorway. The others all jumped, turning to give him guilty grins. He ignored them, sitting down at his computer and scanning the surrounding areas.

"Hey," Tori said after a moment. "I didn't know there were wolves around here!" she exclaimed, pointing to the screen at a dusty-blonde wolf that was running through the trees. Cam didn't say anything for a moment, just watching the wolf, and then he smiled.

"Two of them for sure," he replied. "This one's the only one I've ever seen…and he's been around for a while." He paused for a moment, watching as the wolf disappeared from view only to reappear a few minutes later, running off a poacher, or rather an Ashnazi. "And he seems to hate kelzaks… I used to call him Hunter, before the Bradleys showed up."

"What do you call him now?" Blake asked, watching as the wolf seemingly looked straight at them. The navy ranger was caught off guard by the animal's bright blue eyes as it stared at them through the screen. And then in turned and ran again.

"Um…" Cam muttered. "Hunter I guess," he said with a grin. The others all shrugged and Cam stood up, stretching. He limped over to the couch, favoring his injured leg.

"You said there were two but you've only seen one?" Tori asked. Cam nodded.

"Yeah…there's another one…there's signs that it's been around…" There was silence in the room after that. (A/N: Only because the authoress doesn't know what to write…)

Hunter suddenly appeared in the doorway and the others greeted him simultaneously. He plopped down on the couch next to Cam and inquired shortly about how his leg was doing.

"I'll be fine," Cam muttered. "But I can assure you the Ashnazi won't be," he said loud enough for only Hunter to hear.

Two Days Later:

Blake was asleep on the couch at Ninja Ops when Dustin, Shane and Tori arrived that morning. Needless to say, it confused the three of them, but it made a little more sense when Hunter and Cam came out of the back rooms, obviously having been training. Although, it still didn't make much sense.

Cam and Hunter had refused to say anything on the subject of what was going on, and the other four had decided it best not to pry. However, even Sensei was beginning to get worried, and Cam and Hunter both knew that they wouldn't be able to keep it from them forever.

"Dad says that we have to train today," Cam muttered, looking at the navy ranger curiously. "You know, he was awake when we left him in here…"

"He's not been feeling well lately," Hunter replied. "Just let him sleep." The others all shrugged and they moved to the back rooms.

_So tell me,_ Cam said, telepathically as the two wolves had found they were able to do. _What is wrong with Blake?_

_He hasn't been sleeping well,_ Hunter replied as he instinctively moved into a fighting stance. Cam gave him a bland look and then attacked him. Hunter blocked it, absently noticing that the others had started as well. _His biological father was arrested for child abuse…and he's just been released from jail._ There was a pause as Hunter dodged another punch and then threw one of his own. _He was imprisoned in Oklahoma-that's where Blake's from-but Ed-his father-has been seen around here. Needless to say, that's bothering Blake a lot…_ They fought for a few minutes more and then took a breather.

Cam stopped, placing his hands on his knees and breathing deeply. Hunter did so as well as the two of them turned to look at the other three and give helpful comments to help them improve.

The three rangers stopped after a moment, all pausing to catch their breath. They looked up at Cam and Hunter in confusion as the two wolves suddenly turned to look towards the front room simultaneously. With a slight nod of his head, Hunter turned and left the training room.

"Dude," Dustin moaned, "I know you don't want us to pry, but you're really beginning to creep me out…" Cam just sighed and gave him a sidelong look.

"He's got a point, Cam," Tori commented. "Don't we have a right to know what's going on?"

"Eventually," Cam replied, his eyes suddenly gaining a new look to them. A somewhat feral look. "In due time you will understand everything. But not until then." And with that, he launched into a new attack on Shane, who blocked just in time.

"Blake?" Hunter asked as he entered the front room. Blake didn't respond from where he was seated on the ground in front of the couch, his head resting against his knees. Hunter sat down next to him. "Come on bro, talk to me."

"I saw Ed yesterday," Blake muttered. Hunter blinked, not quite expecting his brother to say that. However, he didn't say anything, allowing the navy ranger to continue. "He's not to happy with me. Says it's my fault he went to jail in the first place… And he says he's going to get his revenge." There was a long pause of silence in which Hunter wrapped his arms around Blake.

The navy ranger fell into the strong embrace, resting against his brother's chest. "You know," Hunter said after a moment. "I would do anything to make sure that creep never touches you." He gave a small chuckle. "Even if that means somehow having Cam's wolves protect you."

"That's not possible," Blake muttered. "They're wild animals…they'd probably attack me before they ever chose to protect me." Hunter gave a slight smile.

"Oh…I don't know about that," he whispered.

Blake sighed as he sat on the bench in the park. It was getting dark out but that didn't bother him. It had been two days since Hunter had said that he would get Cam's wolves to protect him. What he meant by that still confused the ranger. A wolf would never follow the command of a human.

"Blake," a voice above him said suddenly, causing Blake to look up. "How good to see you again," Ed said with a sarcastic smile. Blake stood, watching his biological father warily. "Where's your brother?"

Blake didn't say anything, he didn't back up, in fact he just stared at the man, an obvious dislike in his eyes. And then Ed's fist connected with his jaw, causing him to stumble backwards. Still, he didn't do anything.

"Not going to talk, eh?" Ed asked, his voice filled with malice. He hit the ranger again. And then he jumped back with a startled cry.

A dirty-blonde wolf had just jumped in front of Blake, growling angrily, teeth bared. Ed looked at it in confused fear and then he looked at Blake, who was just as surprised but didn't show it. "You have a new pet, I see," Ed growled. The wolf growled, taking a step forward.

"He's not mine," Blake replied nonchalantly. "He's just a wild wolf that lives around here."

"Right," Ed muttered, backing up. And then another wolf was slowly walking out of the trees to the right. A jet black wolf who was also growling, although not as fiercely. Blake looked at it and then back at his father, who suddenly turned on his heel and took off running.

The two wolves turned towards the surprised navy ranger and just looked at him before they, too, took off running into the trees. Blake sighed, touching his bruised jaw gingerly.

So he had been wrong about the wolves…maybe they listened to Hunter after all…

He arrived at Ninja Ops about half-an-hour after his run in with the canines and slowly walked down the stairs. Cam, Hunter and Shane were down in the main room, watching as Cam typed something on his computer. Tori and Dustin were probably in one of the further back rooms.

Hunter looked up as his brother walked into the room and frowned, walking over to him. He placed one finger under his chin, turning Blake's face to get a better look at his bruised jaw. And then he sighed, not saying anything. Blake pulled away and walked past him.

"Hey Cam," he said, drawing the samurai's attention to him. "I met those wolves you were talking about." Cam's eyes widened.

"You did? They didn't hurt you did they?" Blake shook his head.

"No…quite the opposite in fact…" He cocked his head to one side, looking at Cam curiously. "You said you've never seen the other one?" Cam nodded. "Well…he's jet black…with brownish-black eyes."  
Hunter grinned at that. "Well, I say if Cam's allowed to name a wolf after me, then I'm allowed to name the other one after him!" he exclaimed, giving Cam an odd look.

"I don't know if I want a dog named after me," Cam muttered, turning back to his computer.

"They're not dogs," Shane replied. "They're wolves. There's a difference." Cam sighed, knowing he was defeated. But then again…why shouldn't the wolf be named after him? After all…he was the wolf.

"Well…I still want you to be careful around them. They're wild animals. They'd probably attack you before they ever thought about protecting you…" Blake blinked, having remembered that he had said the exact same thing two days earlier. And then he grinned.

"Oh…I don't know about that…"


	4. Chapter 4

_So that's where you ran off to?_ Cam muttered telepathically, coming into the cave to sit next to Hunter, who was sprawled out on the ground. The Bradley didn't move and the wolf cocked his head to one side. He waited a good ten minutes before finally resorting to licking his wolf-brother's face.

Hunter awoke suddenly, pushing the black wolf away from him and scrubbing at his face. "You licked me," he groaned. Cam glanced back over his shoulder and gave a short shake of his tail.

_Had to get you awake somehow,_ he replied. Hunter sat up, or at least he tried to, but he stopped halfway up, emitting a low growl of pain. Cam spun around, changing forms and kneeling next to Hunter. His hands ran down the ranger's sides gently, stopping at his waist to help him into a better seated position.

"Tell me," he said softly, looking into the thunder ranger's blue eyes. "How exactly did you end up with three broken ribs and an excessively bruised abdomen?"

Hunter raised an eyebrow. "Do I even need to say?" he asked back. With a sigh Cam sat back and then he glanced at Hunter's morpher as Cyber Cam came on.

"Hunter?"

Hunter raised his wrist to his mouth. "Yeah. It's me. And Cam's here too…what's up?"  
"Dude. There's a monster out near the skate park that the others are having trouble with. Care to help?" Cyber Cam asked.

Hunter sighed. "Sure. Be right there." The connection with the clone broke and the thunder ranger looked up at Cam with a rather tired expression on his face. "Let's go."

"You're hurt," Cam retorted.

Hunter shrugged, standing stiffly and morphing. "Your point?" he asked before streaking out of the cave. The wolf sat still for a moment and then shook his head, standing and morphing himself.

"Don't have one I guess," he said to the empty air before leaving the cave.

"So where've you been?" Dustin asked as both Cam and Hunter joined him. Shane was thrown back by one of the monster's many legs. Neither of the two wolves answered.

"What's this one?" Cam asked.

Dustin sighed and looked at the monster. It looked like a giant spider on steroids… "It calls itself Arach…and it's becoming a pain."

"No kidding!" Tori exclaimed, picking herself up off the ground after being thrown. They all shrugged and ran back into the fight.

However, it wasn't long until one of Arach's many legs hit Hunter in the chest, slamming him into the ground and causing him to demorph with a loud cry of pain. Cam was instantly standing above him, Blake a few feet away.

"Make that four broken ribs, Cam," Hunter gasped, his face contorted in pain. Blake glanced back at his brother, worry written all over his concealed face. A single hit like that shouldn't have taken the crimson ranger out so easily. No…something else was up and he really wanted to know what it was.

Dustin watched the three of them, the green, crimson and navy ranger…and he realized that even though Cam and Hunter weren't related, they treated each other the same way Hunter and Blake did. As brothers.

And then he turned and helped Shane and Tori finish off the monster. When the three of them turned back, Hunter was gone and Cam and Blake had already demorphed. "We sent him back to Ops," Cam explained. "I'm going to go and check out his injuries. Stay for a few minutes and make sure nothing else happens," he said before running off.

Both Blake and Dustin watched as the samurai ran into the woods and then they turned towards the empty skate park. Everyone had disappeared as soon as they monster had arrived. There was nothing there now. No reason to stay. Shane and Tori both sighed.

"Let's get back to Ops," Shane muttered.

_Hunter?_ The jet black wolf walked slowly towards his blonde brother lying across the path, his head resting between his paws. Two long incisions cut down his back, bleeding heavily. Cam stopped, nudging Hunter gently.

One blue eye opened wearily and looked up at him. _They're still back there,_ he said softly, his mind-voice but a gentle whisper.

Cam nodded, looking back into the trees. He could sense the Ashnazi there, and knew that he would be able to take them. Hunter, on a good day, would have been able to as well… Unfortunately, this wasn't a good day for the crimson ranger turned wolf._ Good._ He replied, his own mind-voice a growl. _The hunter is about to become the hunted. Stay there and don't leave without me._ And with that, Cam ran off into the trees.

Hunter sighed, lying his head back down and closing his eyes. It hurt to do so much as breath. And then his ears perked up and his eyes opened at the sound of voices coming up the path. The other rangers were coming back…

They stopped short, their conversation dying at the sight of the injured wolf. Hunter slowly raised himself up onto his feet, panting as he did so. Blake was staring at him, and he could see the concern in his eyes. And Dustin…

Dustin looked as though he had just figured something out. And he had. The fact that the wolves were always around when Cam and Hunter were not. They way the two had named the canines after each other. How they tended to act around each other now. It suddenly all made sense.

And Hunter could see that Dustin suddenly knew. He knew their secret. The one that the others still couldn't figure out. The yellow ranger took a small step forward, the wolf taking one back. Their eyes met and locked. _Don't tell the others._

A quiet whisper, a pained whisper, pushing its way through the thoughts racing through his head. Dustin just stared at the wolf. _Don't tell the others, Dustin. Not yet._

But when? Hunter could see that question in the ranger's eyes. The other three rangers all remained silent, not knowing what to think about the injured wolf whose full concentration was on Dustin.

_They will know when the Ashnazi are gone. When they are dead._ Cam's voice penetrated Dustin's mind strongly as the black wolf walked slowly out of the trees. Dustin's attention, along with the other rangers' and Hunter's, all turned to the new wolf, noticing his disheveled appearance. Blood matted the fur on his paws and muzzle, and there were a few small cuts on one of his front legs.

Dustin just watched Cam as he came and stood next to Hunter. The brown-black eyes remained on the yellow ranger though. _When Hunter and I no longer have to fight for our lives… _And then the two wolves ran off, into the woods, Cam running behind Hunter, urging the panting wolf onward.

"What was that all about?" Shane asked, placing a hand on Dustin's shoulder. For a moment, the ranger remained silent and then he shrugged.

"I don't know."

"Go on inside," Cam said, looking around the Bradley's apartment with a frown. "I'm going to look around for a minute. Something doesn't seem right…" Hunter nodded slowly, too tired to voice his opinion. Cam disappeared around the side of the building and Hunter opened the door, walking inside.

As soon as he entered the kitchen, however, something hard slammed into the side of his head and he fell to the ground in front of the window without so much as a moan. There was a small chuckle.

"Seems I hit him just a little too hard," Ed muttered, coming to stand above the unconscious ranger. "But then…it looks like he's already been in his own fight."

The front door opened and the man turned, grinning at a startled Blake, who stood in the kitchen doorway. Blake's eyes moved past his father to the prone form of his brother lying on the floor. And then he was kneeling at Hunter's side, having shoved past the man that had been standing in front of him.

"Is he dead?" Ed asked. "It would be a shame if he wasn't." Blake shot him a glare and then turned his attention back to his brother. "Always in the way," Ed continued. "Always around you. So protective. I hate people like him."

A gun was suddenly pointed at Blake. "And you know," Ed said, as the ranger just stared at him. "I hate people like you." One shot was fired, and Blake hit the wall behind him with an anguished cry of pain. Ed smiled, his eyes shining insanely. Another shot was fired, just as the window above them shattered.

Cam was jerked backwards by the bullet biting into his foreleg, but he ignored it as his paws landed on the ground and he gained hit footing. And then he barreled into Ed, smashing him into the ground. There were a few minutes of struggle before the man went limp and Cam turned towards the two brothers.

Blake was watching him, his eyes glazed with intense pain, and then they slid shut as he relaxed, falling against Hunter limply. Cam turned back into a human, running forward and ignoring the deep throb in his arm. He checked for pulses on the two thunder rangers, and, satisfied, sat back and called Cyber Cam.

"Yo! What's up?" the clone asked. Cam opened his mouth but paused, silent as he heard sirens racing in the background. A neighbor had probably called the police at the sound of the gun.

"Teleport Hunter and Blake back to Ops!" he demanded breathlessly. He was running out of time.

"Why?" Cyber Cam asked.

"Now!" There was a pause and then Hunter and Blake both disappeared.

"What about you?" Cyber Cam asked. Cam shook his head quickly, looking over his shoulder at the dead man lying on the ground, surrounded by bloody paw prints.

"I'm fine." With that, he transformed back into a wolf and jumped out the window just as the front door was opened and a bunch of cops ran in, guns drawn.

End Chapter Four


	5. Chapter 5

Hunter moaned, his eyes fluttering open. "What happened?" he asked as his gaze settled on Dustin. The yellow ranger sighed.

"Cam had Cyber Cam teleport both you and Blake here."

"Blake…where is he?" Hunter asked as he sat up slowly, noticing his chest and back were heavily bandaged. Dustin was silent for a moment.

"With Tori, Shane and Sensei," he muttered. "He's been shot." Hunter's eyes shot upwards, catching Dustin's in shock.

"Shot?"

"Yeah. Shot." Dustin rubbed at his face with the palms of his hands. "As in with a gun."

Hunter's face fell. "Ed," he whispered softly. The yellow ranger nodded, cocking his head to one side.

"Yes. Ed. The ex-con from Oklahoma. The one found mauled to death by some big dog in the middle of your apartment." Again, Hunter's eyes met Dustin's in shock.

"I didn't do that," he whispered. "Where's Cam?" Dustin shook his head slightly.

"We don't know. I'll go out and look for him," he said, standing. "Dude, go to your brother," the ranger muttered as he left. Hunter just sat there for a moment and then he stood, noticing he was still wearing his jeans, and that they were streaked with blood. But he didn't really care…

He walked slowly out of the room he was in and into the one occupied by Blake. Everyone turned as they noticed him in the doorway, but he ignored them, his eyes falling on his younger brother, pale and unconscious on the bed.

Hunter slowly walked towards the bed, crawling onto it and stroking his brother's cheek. And then he did something he hadn't done in a long, long time. He cried.

Burying his face in his brother's hair he sobbed. "I'm sorry Blake," he whispered in a choked voice. "I'm so sorry." Shane turned and ushered both Tori and Sensei out of the room, muttering that it was time to leave the two Bradleys alone.

"Yo, Cam," Dustin said softly, as the black wolf turned towards him. The ranger sat down and Cam limped up to him. "Don't you think it's time to go back to Ops yet?" he asked.

_I'm too tired to change back right now,_ Cam muttered, lying his head on his paws. _And it hurts too much… _Dustin frowned and then he finally noticed the blood seeping from an injury to Cam's foreleg.

"Dude, you've been shot," he said softly, grabbing Cam's leg and ignoring the growl he got from the wolf.

_No kidding,_ Cam retorted, baring his fangs. Dustin raised an eyebrow and tied his jacket tightly around the wound, making an accurate makeshift bandage. The wolf pulled back, sniffing at the bandage and then, satisfied, he laid back down.

"Wolf or not, you really should get back to Hunter…" Dustin muttered. "He's a little…out of it at the moment." Cam didn't reply, his eyes closed as he panted slightly. "And Blake has yet to wake up…" Cam sighed, covering his eyes with one of his paws.

Dustin sighed as well. "Hey, dude, what's the Ashnazi?"

_You mean, who's the Ashnazi._ Cam corrected, looking up and struggling to his feet. _They're the hunters of the Children of Ohkami… That would be Hunter and me…_ He saw Dustin's confused look as the ranger got to his feet and sighed._ We don't understand it either. Apparently, Hunter and I are brothers, and we've been reincarnated quite a few times…but this is our first time as humans. And we can't remember anything from our past lives other than the fact that the Ashnazi want us dead and we have to stay alive._

"That's about as clear as mud," Dustin sighed, beginning to walk back to Ops. "The others won't care that I'm bringing a wolf back…" Cam gave him a strange look and he shrugged. "Okay, so maybe they will care, but who gives?" They were reaching the end of the trees, nearing Ops. "Hunter and Blake need you there. And if you can't come as a human than a wolf will have to work. I'll come up with some lie or the other… Just remember to act like a wild wolf…kinda…don't hurt anyone…"

They were at the entrance to Ops now, and Dustin went down the stairs first, noticing that Shane, Tori and Sensei were all in the front room, by Cam's computer. Great…the territorial Cam wouldn't really appreciate that… "Mama!" he said playfully, "Look what followed me home! Can I keep him?" Cam limped down the stairs, looking at the two people and the guinea pig warily. They all stared at him in shock.

"Dustin…? That's a wolf…a wild wolf…" Tori muttered. Dustin cocked his head to one side. Behind him, Cam growled slightly, emphasizing the blue ranger's point.

"I know," Dustin replied. "I saw the other one out there too, but this one followed me back. Cam said that it's probably worried about Hunter and Blake…considering the wolves seem to have taken a liking to them…I wonder why…" he paused for a minute and then looked up at them again, noticing that Shane, Tori and Sensei were all watching the wolf in concern as it limped to Blake's room.

"Dude! Speaking of Cam, he said he'd be back later," Dustin exclaimed as he opened the bedroom door for the wolf. But he didn't close it again, realizing that that would worry everyone else. They all remained silent, however, not sure what there was to say…

Hunter awoke as the door opened, looking up at Dustin who smiled at him, motioning to the wolf at the edge of the bed. Hunter gave a short sigh and a small smile, letting his hand fall over the edge to rest on Cam's head. The wolf nudged it slightly, and then jumped on the bed, curling up next to his brothers.

Dustin shut the door slowly, turning around and grinning at the completely shocked faces of his comrades. "See, what'd I tell ya?"

"Dustin?" Shane asked. Sensei left the room, shaking his head and muttering about too many secrets. "What is going on?"

Dustin gave a long sigh, dropping onto the couch. "Can't tell ya," he said softly. Tori gave him a long look that bordered on a glare.

"And why not?" she asked. The yellow ranger closed his eyes, leaning back against the couch.

"Because it's a secret. One I promised not to tell…and a promise is a promise. No matter how dangerous it might be…"

End Chapter Five


	6. Chapter 6

_Aricudo had killed him. The human. He hadn't meant to, of course, but the fight had gone out of hand, and now the prince of wolves had killed the prince of humans. And the ruler wasn't happy. No, Kaido had promised to avenge his son's death with the head of Aricudo._

_He couldn't allow that. He couldn't allow his brother to die because of a mistake he had made. And so he, Prince Alchmed, fought alongside Prince Aricudo. And as they fought, they watched their families killed. On both sides of the battle._

The black wolf whimpered where he lay in-between Hunter and Blake on the bed, caught in the throws of memories from years long past. Hunter tightened his grip on the wolf's fur, his face tight with the memories that plagued his dreams as well.

_Aricudo fell. Kaido had killed him. And in his fury, Alchmed took down the King of Humans, driving him to the ground and killing him. But in the process, he was severely injured…and it didn't take long for him to die as well._

_And because they had failed in protecting themselves…in surviving…they were born again. Only to fight again. Fight the Ashnazi, the followers of Kaido. And they had yet to prevail._

Cam jerked awake as his brother was killed once again. Beside him, Hunter also awoke with a moan. The black wolf looked at him, breathing heavily, but before either of them said anything, the door opened and Dustin stepped in.

"Dude," he muttered, looking at the two of them and seeing the anxious fear shining in their eyes. "Yo, Cam," he said after a moment. "The others are gone, but they'll be back soon, you might want to change back now."

Cam stared at him for a moment, and then jumped off the bed, careful not to jostle Blake, who had yet to regain consciousness. He limped into the front room and quickly changed back into a human, sitting on the ground and holding his injured arm. Dustin came in and sat in front of him.

"Dude, ya'll look like you've seen a ghost…both of you," the yellow ranger said softly as he saw Hunter lean on the doorframe, rubbing at his face. Cam didn't answer him, but turned frowning at Hunter, who was glaring at him.

"Why shouldn't I care?" he asked back, although vocally. Dustin sighed, and moved so that he was seated on the stair steps, watching as Cam got to his feet, his arm hanging limply at his side.

"Do you think I don't?" Hunter practically yelled. "Do you think I don't care that you're always getting hurt because of me?"

"And how do you think I feel about that!" Cam yelled, throwing up his arm in exasperation. "I do it because I care!"

"Why do you have to take everything so personally!" Hunter asked. Dustin sighed, noticing Shane and Tori walking down the stairs. They stopped, staring at the display before them, their gazes moving down to the yellow ranger, who was watching in silence.

"What's going on?" Shane asked. Dustin shrugged slightly, moving over a little to allow Tori to sit beside him.

"Because I am sick and tired of some crazy guy trying to kill us!" Cam answered. Hunter grabbed the samurai by the forearms, slamming him into a wall and pinning him there, causing Cam to give a pained yelp as the injury on his arm broke open again.

"I never asked you to fight beside me," the thunder ranger growled soft enough for only Cam to hear. "Blake's hurt because I wasn't able to protect him. Everyone that died died because of me. For that I deserve to die." Cam just stared at him, getting a major sense of deja vu.

"They died because of me and for that I should die!" Aricudo growled at his brother, who was pinned beneath his paws. And then he was gone…not to be seen in that lifetime again…

Cam jerked out Hunter's hold suddenly, spinning around and pinning Hunter to the wall with one arm across his chest, his other hand pinning Hunter's to the side. The thunder ranger gave a hiss of pain but didn't comment as Cam leaned in closer.

"I will not allow you to die again," he whispered, his hand slipping on Hunter's wrist slightly, due to the blood running down his arm. "This time will be different. This time Kaido will die before we do. This time we will win." Cam's glare softened into a worried look as he gazed at Hunter with his dark eyes. "I will not lose my brother again, Aricudo," he murmured. Hunter just stared at him, shocked by the use of his former name. And then he pulled out of Cam's hold, heading towards Blake's bedroom in silence. Cam leaned against the wall, his hand moving to grasp his bloodied arm with a grimace.

"Dustin. Go make sure Hunter doesn't do anything stupid," he muttered, not bothering to look at the other three rangers in the room as he slid down the wall and sat on the ground. Leaning his back against the wall, he drew his knees up to his chest and rested his head in them with a sigh, completely ignoring Dustin as he left the room and the two other rangers as they entered.

The samurai didn't move as Shane wordlessly dropped to his knees in front of him, cleaning and binding his arm. Cam could feel the tension in the room, the unasked questions coming from both Tori and Shane. But he couldn't tell them. Not yet. Not without his brother's permission…

_Cam?_ Hunter's voice echoed through the samurai's mind. _Cam, I'm sorry…I…I'm so sorry. I don't know what to do…_

_Don't leave me,_ Cam replied, lifting his head from his knees and forcing himself to his feet. _Don't leave me to fight Kaido alone again. You should know by now that that never works…_

_So…what should we do?_ Hunter asked. Cam ignored the looks Tori and Shane were giving him as he made his way to the computer, he didn't even acknowledge the other two rangers.

_We fight, of course,_ Cam answered. _But we fight together._ Hunter didn't reply for a moment, but when he did it was a promise to fight beside his brother, not to leave him alone again.

Dustin walked back into the room, but he didn't look at the others as he went up the stairs and left Ops. Cam proceeded in his updates on the Zords and after a moment, both Tori and Shane left to go into one of the practice rooms.

Hunter sat on the bed, staring at the blankets, lost in thought. But a soft moan forced him from his reverie, his gaze moving to his brother. Gently, Hunter brought one hand to his brother's cheek, caressing it softly.

"Blake, can you hear me? Come on, open your eyes, bro," he murmured. Blake forced his eyes open and his gaze met his brother's. "Good…evening…" Hunter whispered.

Blake sat up and threw his arms around his brother's neck, startling Hunter. The navy ranger buried his face in the crook of Hunter's neck and bit back a sob. "I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry," he repeated. Hunter gently wrapped his arms around Blake and rocked him.

"Shh…it's okay," he consoled. "Everything's fine now." There was a slight pause. "Ed's dead. Everything's fine now."

"And think of it this way," Cam's voice came from the doorway. "You can't be charged with murder since it was one of the wolves that killed him." Both Bradleys turned towards him, Hunter giving him a small smile, which the samurai returned. Blake, however, frowned.

"The wolf," he muttered, drawing both Hunter and Cam's attention to him. "It was shot…"

Cam absently rubbed at his arm, the bandages hidden beneath the green jacket he had pulled on. "Well…it came by earlier and seemed fine…" he said softly. "At least, according to Dustin…" Hunter nodded, although his face was worried.

_You never told me that you were shot,_ he said silently. Cam glanced at him.

_Didn't cross my mind,_ he replied. Hunter sighed and then slid off the edge of the bed and onto his feet, pulling Blake with him. Cam frowned at that. "Um…technically, the two of you aren't supposed to be up yet," he said slowly.

"Your point?" Hunter asked.

Cam sighed, remembering the last time Hunter had said that. "Don't have one I guess…"

End Chapter Six


	7. Chapter 7

Hunter and Blake both paused in the unloading of the boxes, breathing heavily, lightly grasping injured body parts. Dustin also paused in his unloading, setting down a box and looking at the two of them.

"Hey, dudes," he said softly. "Maybe Cam's right and you shouldn't be here…"

"We're fine, Dustin," Hunter muttered through gritted teeth. Kelly came back into the storage room to check on them and frowned.

"Are you two feeling alright?" she asked, looking pointedly at the Bradleys. They both just stared at her, nodding. With a sigh, she turned around and went back into the front of the shop.

"How about I finish back here, and the two of you go out front," Dustin suggested. For a minute, it seemed as though the two thunders would disagree, but then they both shrugged and walked through the door.

It took nearly fifteen minutes before Dustin was finished, but when he was, he came to the front of the store and struck up a motocross conversation with the two thunders. Hunter, however, was frowning, glancing out the door every few minutes. Something was wrong.

And Dustin and Blake could both see how agitated the ranger was. How he just seemed to want to get up and run out.

_ARICUDO!_

And then Hunter did jump up, running out of Storm Charger's with no regard of the yells following him from both Kelly and Blake. Dustin just watched, a frown marring his own face. Yes, something was wrong…

Cam walked complacently through the woods surrounding Ops with Shane and Tori. Cyber Cam had been put to work repairing the Zords, giving Cam a little free time. Tori and Shane were complaining about one of Lothor's monsters that they had had to fight earlier that day.

"Cam?" Tori asked.

Cam blinked and looked up at her frowning face. "Huh? What?"

"We've been calling your name for a few minutes now," Shane replied. "What are you thinking about?"

"Oh…just…stuff…" he answered slowly. There were three Ashnazi following them.

"Cam?" Tori repeated his name, drawing his attention again. She looked worried, oddly enough. "What is going on? With you and Hunter I mean?"

Cam sighed, his eyes moving to the trees. The Ashnazi had disappeared, and it was worrying him. But Hunter was with both Blake and Dustin at Storm Chargers; nothing could happen to them there. Right?

"Cam?" Shane asked. Cam opened his mouth to answer, but before he could, something pounced out of the trees, claws outstretched and he had to dodge out of the way.

"Greetings from Lothor," a cat-lady hissed, crouching in front of the three rangers. Oddly enough, she actually looked humanoid, aside from the slit-pupil eyes, the ears and the tail. And the obvious fangs and claws, of course. "I'm on a mission to find and possibly kill Alchmed and Aricudo. Have you three seen either of them?"

Both Tori and Shane looked confused, but morphed anyway. And were suddenly bombarded with tons of kelzaks. Cam, however, took a step back, his eyes widening before narrowing to a glare, a low growl coming from his throat. The cat-lady smirked.

"Found you," she said softly. And then she pounced again, landing on top of Cam, knocking him to the ground and ripping the samurai stone from around his neck. She threw it to the side. "Fight me face to face, wolf."

Tori and Shane fought off the kelzaks, trying to get to Cam. And when they were finally able to see him, they were surprised by the way he threw the cat off him, his face contorted in anger. Not morphed, the samurai and the cat fought fist to fist, neither of them gaining the upper hand. And then the two winds were caught in yet another wave of kelzaks.

Cam hit the ground, one arm twisted awkwardly above him. The cat was pinning him to the ground, her hands around his throat. He grabbed at her hands with his free one, trying to get her to loosen her hold. She smirked at his vain efforts.

"One down, one to go," she muttered, tightening her grip.

"CAM!" He heard Tori's yell, but was unable to do anything about it. The cat just kept smirking.

And so, he called his brother. A desperate cry for relief.

Hunter ran down the street, towards the trees, and as soon as he reached them he changed into his wolf form. Racing through the trees he soon found the other rangers by the sound of their fighting. Tori and Shane were still trying to get to Cam, but were unable to do so.

Hunter barreled into the cat-lady, knocking her off the samurai, and then standing in front of him protectively. Cam struggled into a seated position, watching as all the kelzaks suddenly disappeared, leaving the cat lady and the rangers and the one wolf.

Hunter's fangs were barred as he growled viciously at the cat. But she only smirked in return.

"You forgot to protect what's most important to you," she said. The tan wolf hesitated for a split second before jumping in to attack her. She countered it easily, knocking him aside. "What about your family? You forgot…"

Before she could attack him again, Cam was standing in front of him, taking a defensive stance. _Get to Storm Chargers! Now! You need to get to Blake!_ Hunter hesitated, glancing at Cam and then at the cat, and then he took off running.

"Yes…" The cat hissed, smiling as she watched him go. "Run, run as fast as you can…but you still can't get there in ti-"

She was cut off by the feel of cold steel at her neck and her arm being viciously yanked backwards. "What does Lothor want with Alchmed and Aricudo?" Cam questioned. Shane and Tori, still in shock, were still standing where the kelzaks had left them, watching Cam. They were surprised by the anger in his face, the wildness of his eyes. And even more confused by the whole Alchmed, Aricudo thing.

The cat shrugged. "He was told it would cut down the number of rangers. So what?"

"You are going to deliver a message for me," Cam replied.

"I am not a message boy," the cat growled angrily. The blade cut deeper into her throat, a thin red line appearing.

"No, you're my message kitty," Cam muttered. "Tell Lothor to leave Aricudo and Alchmed out of this. Tell him that they are not his business. And tell him that if he doesn't then I'll go up to that ship of his and personally rip his throat out. Yours as well. And everyone else's who gets in my way. Tell him that."

The cat's eyes widened as she felt his anger emanating from him and she gave a shaky nod. Cam let go and she disappeared. He turned, snatching his amulet off the ground and then facing the two winds.

"We need to get to Storm Chargers. Now." And then he ran.

Hunter ran through the woods again, this time changing back into a human and morphing. He then streaked off to Storm Chargers, stopping in shock at what he saw. The place was overrun by both kelzaks and Ashnazi.

Blake and Dustin were unconscious, the wind up against a wall, being guarded by kelzaks, and the thunder in the hold of the Ashnazi. Kelly was kneeling next to Dustin, a look of pure horror on her face. Apparently, the Ashnazi were no longer trying to hide themselves.

Hunter jumped in for the attack.

Cam, Shane and Tori made it to Storm Chargers in time to see a morphed Hunter crash through the store's window, rolling to a stop a few feet away. The few kelzaks that were outside the store suddenly disappeared, along with all the ones inside as well.

Shane helped Hunter to his feet and they all went inside and demorphed. Kelly was in the room, watching them.

"Ya'll are the Power Rangers?" she asked, her voice shaky. They didn't even pause in their nodding as Cam went and dropped to his knees besides Dustin. "What were those?" she asked quietly.

"Kelzaks," Shane answered, beginning to clean up the store. Tori helped them, but Hunter just stood in the middle of the room, looking as though he were in shock.

"I know about those…what about the other ones?" Kelly asked. Both conscious winds looked at her in confusion, but Cam's head shot up, his eyes meeting Hunter's.

"They have Blake," Hunter muttered. "The Ashnazi have Blake."

For a moment the entire room went silent, the winds and Kelly wondering who the Ashnazi were and what they wanted with Blake, and Cam and Hunter wondering how safe Blake would be in their care. Not very, they both assumed.

_We'll get him back. Don't worry. We'll get him back by the end of the week._ Cam's voice echoed in Hunter's mind and the crimson ranger rubbed at his face with the palms of his hands.

_Will he still be alive by the end of the week?_

Cam's attention went back to Dustin as the yellow ranger gave a soft groan. Shane and Tori had silently gone back to cleaning, Hunter leaning against the counter.

_He better be,_ was Cam's only reply.


	8. Chapter 8

"Where's Cam and Hunter?" Dustin asked as he walked into the front room of Ops. Tori sighed, rubbing at her face with the palms of her hands. Shane just shrugged.

"Hunter walked out a few minutes ago and Cam was quick to follow…" the blue ranger muttered. Dustin raised an eyebrow.

"Like, walked out where?"

"Out the door," Shane replied. He glanced at the computer. "Shouldn't we be trying to find Blake?"

"Or something?" Tori asked. She groaned, standing and dropping into the chair in front of the large computer console. "Argh! I can't take this anymore! I have to do something!" She flipped on the computer and Dustin inwardly groaned. Cam probably wouldn't be happy with that…especially in his distressed state…

"What's going on Dustin!" Shane demanded suddenly, surprising the yellow wind ranger. "Who is Alchmed? Who's Aricudo? What the heck are the Ashnazi? What's with those wolves! And what do Cam and Hunter have to do with it!"

"Oh my gosh," Tori gasped, drawing their attention. She was staring at the screen that showed two wolves outside Ops fighting it out with claws and teeth. "They're going to kill each other," she whispered in horror.

"They're smarter than that…" Dustin muttered in reply. He grimaced as Hunter and Cam circled each other warily before going for each other's throats. "Or at least I thought they were…" With that, he ran out of the room. Shane and Tori both glanced at each other before jumping up and following him.

Dustin grabbed Hunter by the scruff of the neck, forcefully pulling him away from Cam. The other two winds emerged in front of the portal in time to see Dustin clamp both hands over the tan wolf's jaw, forcing his mouth shut and then turn his annoyed glare to the black wolf.

"Exactly how old are you again?" he asked in annoyance. "I can't believe that lately you've been making me be the mature one."

_He promised he wouldn't leave me behind this time,_ Cam growled. Dustin rolled his eyes, tightening his grip on Hunter's neck.

"Change back." Black eyes looked at the yellow ranger viciously. The three of them hadn't even noticed the presence of Shane, Tori and now Sensei. "Now." The wolf's form changed into that of a human, and the other winds and the guinea pig all gasped.

The wild look hadn't left Cam's eyes and he looked as though he would still attack anyone who got in his way. And that included Dustin…who was most certainly in his way. Hunter was still struggling against Dustin as well, but the yellow ranger kept his grip firm.

"Now, would you two just settle down long enough that we can come up with a plausible plan to rescue Blake?" Dustin asked calmly. Cam growled and Hunter bared his teeth. "You know, I think I understand the whole 'sibling rivalry' thing now…"

"Being captured by Kaido is not the same thing as being captured by Lothor," Cam muttered, his eyes still on Hunter. And then they focused on Dustin. "We've been killed enough times to understand that now…"

"Would someone be kind enough to explain to me what is going on?" Sensei asked. Both Cam and Hunter growled at the guinea pig and Dustin raised an eyebrow.

"Great, two angry wolves plus a guinea pig equals…not good."

"I'm not going to eat my father, Dustin," Cam muttered, giving the ranger an irritated look.

Dustin just returned it with a sarcastic one. "Good, because a moment ago you were trying to kill your brother." Cam didn't answer and Dustin let go of Hunter.

Immediantly the bodies of two wolves collided as they went back to fighting each other. Dustin's foot connected with Hunter's chest, knocking the wind out of him and forcing him into the ground. Dustin then turned to Cam, glaring at him angrily. The wolf just growled, baring his teeth.

"I can understand Hunter, but not you Cam. You're smarter than this. Hunter's brother was kidnapped by this Kaido person…"

_He's my brother too!_

"I know that! All I'm asking is that you grow up! Killing each other will not make Kaido happy…"

_No, he'd probably be overjoyed by it… _Hunter whimpered, closing his eyes. _I just want Blake back. I want him safe. And I want Alchmed safe as well…and he won't be if he comes with me…_

"But if you go alone than you'll die…again," Dustin replied. Hunter didn't answer and Cam sighed, relaxing a little. Shane, Tori and Sensei had all given up on an explanation for the time being…reverting to silent observance. Never before had they seen Dustin so serious.

The yellow ranger sighed, rubbing at his face. "I heard you promise Cam that you wouldn't leave him behind, Hunter. A promise is a promise. I had to keep my promise to ya'll that I wouldn't tell the others. I didn't."

_Well…they most certainly know now…_Cam muttered as he slowly moved over to where Hunter was lying. The black wolf sat down behind his brother, resting his head on the tan body. Hunter just sighed.

"The more help the better," Dustin said with a shrug. Shane spun around suddenly, catching a dagger that was flying towards them. All eyes were focused on the red ranger, the two wolves coming to full attention.

Shane unraveled the note tied around the dagger and read it aloud, his voice faltering a little. "'Tomorrow morning, nine a.m. the trade of the navy ranger for Aricudo and Alchmed will take place. If you're not on time, the boy dies.'" Shane's hand dropped to his side as he looked at the small group in front of him.

"Who are Alchmed and Aricudo?" Tori asked softly. "What the heck is going on?"

"That's…a long story…" Dustin replied, looking at the two wolves, who were staring back at him.

_Go ahead… _Cam was tired, he was tired of lying, of concealing, of not having any help aside from his brother and the yellow ranger. He was, simply put, tired. And so was Hunter.

"Cam and Hunter are Alchmed and Aricudo. They are the two children of Ohkami, the Wolf Goddess. A while back…um…three hundred years ago? Something like that, Aricudo, Hunter, accidentally killed some guy's kid. Ever since then they've been fighting his followers, the Ashnazi, and him and it's always gone down in a way that Kaido—the bad dude—kills Aricudo and then Alchmed kills Kaido only to die himself. And if they can change it in a way that Kaido dies but they don't, then they won't have to be reborn again. There, that was the short version."

"I'm still confused," Shane muttered, rubbing his head.

Sensei sighed wearily, looking at his son, who was still leaning against Hunter. "Still, that explains a lot."

"Now, all we have to do is save Blake," Tori muttered quietly.

Cam and Hunter both closed their eyes with a collective sigh. _Yes, Blake will be saved. And Kaido will die. Tomorrow._


	9. Chapter 9

Nine o'clock was fast approaching, and the rangers were all in the woods, near the small cove that was so popular among them. The plan was that Cam and Hunter would go out first, and as soon as they 'turned themselves over' the Wind Rangers would jump out, all guns blazing. They would get Blake out of the hands of the Ashnazi, and leave Kaido for both Hunter and Cam.

If things got bad, then the rangers themselves would attack Kaido, hopefully killing him.

"Everyone know the plan?" Cam muttered questionably. There were nods from all around, although no eyes left the cove. The Ashnazi and Kaido had already arrived, Blake held by two of the man's followers.

The Navy Ranger was in bad shape. Even from so far away Cam and Hunter could both tell he was unconscious. Hunter growled slightly and Cam placed a hand on his shoulder.

"Nine," Shane said softly. The two wolves nodded, changing and making their way down to the beach. Kaido was watching, a smirk gracing his lips.

"Seems you actually came," he said. "And here I thought you didn't care for humans." Neither wolf gave in to the taunting, both standing their ground, growling at their reincarnated foe.

_Release him,_ Cam growled, his eyes moving to stare at Blake. You said you would.

"I did, didn't I?" Kaido asked. And then his smirk turned into a discouraging grin. "Oh, but since you're going to die, I might as well kill him too…"

Sand flew up as the Ashnazi suddenly attacked the two wolves viciously. They dodged weapons, biting at legs and trying to get to the navy ranger.

They didn't have to, though, seeing as how the wind rangers had suddenly materialized and already gotten their injured brother away from the two Ashnazi that had been holding him captive. They all stood back, watching the wolves slowly fight the Ashnazi, all the while trying to get to Kaido.

Tori gasped as one of the Ashnazi grabbed Hunter by the neck, slamming him into the ground. Cam suddenly jumped up, his fangs biting into the warrior's throat, and ripping it free with a spray of blood. The black wolf growled as the Ashnazi fell to the ground, twitching as he succumbed to death. The others all backed away slowly, leaving Kaido to face the wolf.

Hunter didn't move, having been knocked senseless by the earlier attack. He whimpered a little from his place behind Cam, shaking his head while trying to regain his senses. Cam growled, circling the man in front of him, Kaido doing the same although smirking somewhat.

Tori, Shane and Dustin all watched in shocked amazement. They knew that Hunter and Cam had been fighting to protect themselves; they just didn't know that they had been killing in order to do so. The fierceness they had seen in Cam's form when he had taken down that one warrior had been enough to render them all speechless…and now…it was even more intense.

Suddenly, Cam leapt, attacking Kaido with enough fury to knock him off guard. The human took off running down the beach, the black wolf close behind. Hunter regained his footing then, watching them go, seeing the Ashnazi quietly following, hoping to take out the wolf while his attention was on Kaido.

The tan wolf ran forward, teeth sinking into the flesh of his opponents. The rangers did nothing to stop him, although didn't turn their attention from him. They had already had Cyber Cam teleport Blake back, allowing the navy ranger to gain the medical attention that he needed.

One by one, the Ashnazi fell by the fierceness of the child of Ohkami. One by one, Hunter took down his foes, hoping that Cam would do the same. Praying, wishing. Cam had to win, and he had to live or they would have to do this same thing all over again. They wouldn't be able to rest…

The last of the Ashnazi fell, finally, and the three winds ran over to the wolf, who was staring off in the direction Cam and Kaido had run. Shane dropped to his knees beside Hunter, giving him a curious look.

All four of them jumped when a cry was suddenly heard above the crashing of the waves and the whistling of the wind. A death cry.

Hunter jumped forward, only to be pulled back by Shane, who had wrapped his arms around the wolf. He struggled, but was too tired, too spent to actually be able to pull free.

"Hush, we'll find Cam," Tori said softly. "As for now, you need rest and you need to get back to Blake."

Cam stumbled back from the body of his foe, still twitching in the wet sand. The wolf changed back into the form of his human body, turning his back on the dead human and staggered down the beach, along the water line.  
He coughed, bringing one hand up to wipe at the blood running down his cheek. Kaido was dead, Hunter was alive. Blake was alive. He was alive…well…as alive as you could be when you were sure you were just about to collapse.

And collapse he did, falling to the sand as he allowed himself to be pulled into darkness. The waves gently washed over his legs, soaking him up to his waist, but he was oblivious to it all.

"My, my," a voice suddenly said, the figure cocking his head to one side. "What have we here?" And with that, Zurgane scooped up the unconscious ranger, cackling to himself about how pleased Lothor would be of him today…


	10. Chapter 10

"Dude, you don't look so good," Cyber Cam said to Hunter as they entered Ops. Hunter growled, snapping at the cyber clone, only to have Shane forcefully jerk him back. They entered the main room and Hunter dropped to the ground, hiding his face in his forearms.

"Don't bother him," Shane said softly to the others: Tori, Cyber Cam and Sensei. Dustin had gone off in search of Cam. "He's not really himself at the moment."

"How's Blake?" Tori asked, her concern evident in her voice. Cyber Cam opened his mouth to answer, but closed it again when another voice answered for him.

"I'm fine," Blake said, coming into the room. "Just have a headache." His eyes were on his brother, and he dropped to the ground beside him. Hunter looked up at him, and then collapsed into his little brother's embrace.

The others all watched the two of them for a moment before turning away, feeling as though they were snooping. A few minutes later, Shane turned around to find Hunter asleep, sprawled in his brother's lap, his head resting against Blake's shoulder and bicep. He was being supported by Blake's arm, snaking around to wrap across his chest, the navy ranger's hand at his waist.

"Hmm," Shane hummed. "Who's older? Aricudo or Alchmed?"

Blake sighed, rubbing at his face with his free hand. "Aricudo. He's older by two years."

"Um," Tori murmured. "That doesn't make sense. Cam's twenty-four. Hunter's seventeen? And Hunter's older than him?"

Blake sighed again, looking down at his older brother. "Reincarnation's a fickle thing…" he quoted with a grimace. There were unasked questions shining in Shane and Tori's eyes and Blake went ahead and answered them. "Kaido explained everything to me…kind of."

"So…Cam's kinda your middle brother in a strange sort of way," Shane reasoned. Blake shrugged.

"Dude," Dustin's voice echoed from the stairs as he leapt down them. "That's just a little too confusing."

"You find Cam?" Tori asked immediantly.

Dustin frowned, marring his otherwise handsome face. "I found this," he said, holding up Cam's amulet. "And a very dead Kaido and footprints…" he paused, running a hand through his brown locks. "Zurgane's footprints."

Blake felt Hunter tense slightly, knowing that his brother was only half asleep. But then he relaxed again, and the navy ranger figured that he'd worry later. "So," Blake asked. "What now?"

"We get Cam back," Shane replied. "Heck, we've done it before. It's not like Lothor knows how to hold captives very well…"

Blake grimaced and Tori sighed. Cyber Cam shrugged, seating himself at the computer and flipped it on. "Dude," he commented, his fingers flying over the keyboard. "I'll find Cam and then ya'll can go and, like, rescue him. Sound good?"

"That's great," Dustin muttered. "Thanks."

Cam groaned, immediantly not liking the situation he was in. Of course, not many people enjoy being chained to a wall in a deep pit in the middle of Lothor-knows-where. And it was obvious that this was Lothor's doing because he was the one laughing at the samurai from his vantage point at the top of the pit.

Cam's dark eyes watched his uncle, not bothering to hide his pain. He hurt, and that was that.  
"Well, dear nephew, it looks as though you are going to die very soon. How do you feel about that?" Lothor asked, smirking slightly.

Cam stared up at him, the words taking a while to sink into his fuzzy mind. It was hard to think due to the pain, but he could come up with a sarcastic retort. It was a talent of his, after all. "Bite me," he muttered.

"Oh, I don't plan too," Lothor replied with a wave of his hand. "I'm going to have my monster do that for me." The chains released Cam then, and he collapsed to the ground, not even bothering to try and push himself up. He hurt way too much.

_Aricudo…_ His mind was but a fragile whisper, but he persisted anyway.

Hunter exited the room, head towards the ground, claws clicking against the flooring. He had heard his brother's weak cry, but had lost contact after that. Dustin was in the front room, watching as Cyber Cam typed away, searching for the lost Samurai Ranger.

"Hey man, somethin' wrong?" Dustin asked, catching sight of the tan wolf. Hunter sat himself down, his tail wrapping around his paws as he gazed at the wind with unnervingly clear blue eyes.

_I heard Cam,_ he said.

Dustin blinked in surprise. "Do you know where he is?" The wolf gave a single shake of his head before getting back to his feet and leaping up onto the couch. "Tori and Shane and Blake are in the back, training. You can join them if you like."

Hunter didn't move, just standing and watching Cyber Cam impatiently. He wanted to find his brother. It wasn't much of a tradeoff, saving one brother to have the other kidnapped by his evil uncle.

"Got it!" Cyber Cam suddenly exclaimed, just as the other three rangers were entering the room. They all ran forward, questions about the location flowing from them, but Dustin and Hunter, who had seen the screen, had already run out of the room.

Cam gave a cry of pain as he was thrown aside by the giant monster again. He couldn't fight it, not in the state he was in. Although, on any good day, it didn't look as though it would be too hard to beat. It was just a large lizard…monkey…thing. Okay, so maybe it wasn't all that easy to beat, but it sure was getting the better of Cam.  
"What? Surely you're not giving up, nephew," Lothor called down to him. And then the alien's eyes widened and he turned around. "No! Not the other rangers!"

Cam didn't bother to get up, he just gave a sob, half out of relief, and half from the overbearing pain. Hunter was kneeling in front of him, and he looked up at the crimson clad ranger, eyes glassy from his agony. "It hurts," he whispered.

"Shh…we're gonna get you outa here," Hunter murmured, gathering his brother in his arms and grimacing as Cam gave an involuntary cry of pain. He turned just in time to see the winds destroy the large creature but no scroll appeared. They all gave a collected sigh of relief and streaked off.

"Um, guys," Blake said as soon as Cam had been settled in. "You might want to take a look at this." Having been forced behind due to just having gotten rescued himself, Blake had been watching the news, since the computer had suddenly shut itself off.

The other rangers turned towards the TV set and everyone frowned. "Due to the death of Ed Stamps," the news reporter was explaining. "A large wolf hunt has begun. These animals are killers and must be stopped…" Hunter shut off the power and glanced at everyone, one eyebrow raised skeptically.

"So…not only do we have to deal with Lothor and the Ashnazi, but now we've got the citizens against us as well…" he sighed. "Oh is life ever hard." Hunter gave a grimace than and turned towards Cam's room once again. "Goodnight…" and with that, he walked off.

"So," Dustin said, dropping to the floor and crossing his legs Indian style. "What now?"


	11. Chapter 11

"You really take this big brother thing seriously," Shane said, leaning against the doorframe. Hunter just gave a half-smile, not moving from where he was leaning against the backboard of the bed. Cam was leaning against his chest, Blake's head resting in his lap. Both of Hunter's younger brothers were asleep.

"Either I do, or they do," Hunter shrugged slightly. "What's up with the whole wolf hunt?"

"Dustin's trying to figure that out."

"Good to know someone is." He paused, looking at Cam for a second. "And Lothor? What about him?"

"We kicked his butt again," Shane grinned. "He'll go back to his ship and lick his wounds and then try again."

"He did manage to hurt Cam pretty good, though," Hunter murmured.

Shane frowned, looking down at the samurai. "Yeah, but Cam will heal. We always do."

Hunter remained silent, his eyes closed, frowning softly. "Something's wrong," he whispered. "I don't know what though."

"What are you talking about?" Shane asked. "Cyber Cam would tell us if something was wrong, right?"

"I'm not talking about Lothor and his goons. I'm talking about the Ashnazi. We killed Kaido, he's gone. They should be leaving us alone now, right?"

"That would make sense, yes," Shane replied.

"Then why aren't they?" Hunter asked, opening his blue eyes and gazing at the red ranger. "They're still coming after us."

For a long moment neither of them spoke, their eyes locked as their minds tried to find the answer to that problem. However, it was beyond them, and they soon gave up. The answer would come in some form or another; they would just have to wait for it.

Storm Chargers had finally gotten around to repairing its windows. Kelly was waiting for them when they arrived the next morning, gazing at them in worry. "Is everything alright?" she asked softly as they all gathered behind the counter.

"Cam's still sore, I'm exhausted and Hunter's more protective than ever," Blake said easily. "And Dustin seems to smart for his own good…"

"Hey! I heard that!" Dustin said, wrinkling his nose as he glared at the navy ranger, who only grinned at him.

"I was meaning for you to."

"Boys," Hunter said softly, although amusement sparkled in his eyes. "Enough. Now get to work."

"Yes mom," both Dustin and Blake said at the same moment before walking off. Kelly and Hunter both glanced at each other, shrugging.

"The fact that ya'll are the rangers still boggles me completely," Kelly said as Hunter began unloading boxes.

He shrugged, looking up at her. "Sorry about the secrets, it's safer that way." She waved the apology aside and watched him work for a few minutes. Hunter looked up then, frowning as he stared at the opposite wall. "Something's wrong," he murmured.

"What?" she asked, looking over her shoulder and not seeing anything.

"I don't know yet," he answered, moving to the front of the store. Outside the window was someone he never thought he'd see again. "Okay…that's the problem," he murmured, taking an involuntary step back as both Dustin and Blake came back into the front room.

"Hunter?" Blake asked, seeing the shocked look on his brother's face.

Hunter glanced at the navy ranger and then back at the people outside the shop. Inside was his adopted brother, his friend, his comrade. Outside was his biological brother, his tormentor, his nightmare. And he was surrounded by the Ashnazi, apparently leading them.

Hunter shook his head, biting his lip as he moved back to the storage room. When Blake and Dustin followed him back a few minutes later, he was gone.

Hunter sank to the ground, holding his head in his hands as he trembled slightly. He hadn't expected to see Luke there. He hadn't expected for Luke to be leading the Ashnazi. He hadn't expected such a drastic turn of events.

Blake walked down the steps, dropping to his knees in front of the wolf. "Hunter, what's up?" he asked, his voice not hiding his concern.

"Luke's leading the Ashnazi," Hunter replied, looking up at his brother. The memory of fear shone in his eyes.

"Who?"

"My biological brother. I lived with him up until the time I was six, remember?" Blake nodded. "He was sent to jail after he nearly killed me. He wasn't supposed to be out yet."

"And he's leading the Ashnazi?" Blake asked. Hunter nodded, shuddering slightly.

"How fitting," Cam said as he came into the room. The samurai dropped to the ground next to his two brothers. "What now?"

"Well," Blake said. "You've now got yet another guy who wants you dead, Lothor's upset by his loss, and the citizens are saying that the wolves are going to have to be killed."

"And how do we fix those problems?" Cam asked, rubbing at his forehead wearily.

"We fight Luke, the Ashnazi and Lothor, staying alive as we do so. And we try to convince the city that we, as wolves, don't want to hurt them," Hunter replied.

"How?" Blake asked.

For a moment there was no reply and then Cam spoke. "Have the rangers defend us and we fight with them?" he asked.

"It'll work," Hunter and Blake both murmured simultaneously.

"Good." Cam paused, looking up at his computer. "I'll help with Luke. You don't have to do it alone, Aricudo," he whispered.

Hunter gazed at his wolf brother for a short moment and then nodded a grateful nod.


	12. Chapter 12

Hunter sighed, leaning against the counter in boredom. Storm Chargers was practically empty aside from the staff. And currently, Blake was sleeping on the couch and Dustin was working in the back, so there was no one for him to talk to.

Nothing had happened for nearly a week, and while the rangers all prepared fro an attack from Lothor, they were also wondering about Luck and the Ashnazi. It wouldn't take long for him to get up the nerve to attack the two wolves who had finally managed to kill Kaido for good.

But even now, the citizens of Blue Bay Harbor were hunting for the wolves. The fact that Ed Stamps and a few others (their bodies found on the beach and left unidentified) had been killed by them enough evidence to evoke the death sentence. Hunter was stuck between a rock and a hard place, and there was nothing he could do about it.

The front door opened and Hunter looked up, biting back a groan when he saw who it was. However, keeping his best interests in mind, he decided to just, well, play it cool. "Hey there. Need any help?" he asked Luke, trying his best to look impassive.

"No, no," Luke answered easily, coming to lean against the counter, right in front of Hunter. "Just wanted to talk to you."

"Me?" the ranger asked, feigning surprise. "Pray tell, why?"

"Because, dear brother," Luke growled, "I'd like to know how you finally killed off my Master. After all those tries, all those wasted lives…how'd you do it?"

Hunter gazed at him coolly, his blue eyes never giving anything away. "You were working with him all along," he said softly.

Luke smiled grimly. "But of course. He was my father after all." The man took Hunter's chin in his hand, holding his gaze. "Which means he was your father too. How ironic is that?"

"I've never been one to like irony," Hunter replied, jerking out of Luke's hold. "twists life around too much."

"You're the reason he left you know," Luke hissed. "so you wouldn't remember him when he finally got around to killing you. And he couldn't bear to think that he was the father of the wolf he's been wanting to kill so badly for the past three hundred years."

"Is there something you want Luke?" Hunter asked, his voice going as cool as his gaze. "Because otherwise you're going to have to leave."

"Oh, there's something I want more than anything, Aricudo," the man growled. "I want you dead. You and your brothers. Both of them. The more the better." He paused, gripping Hunter's arm and jerking him forward. Hunter slammed into the counter, turning away as Luke put his mouth close to his ear, his grip tightening.

"You killed me 300 years ago, brother. And this time it's going to be the other way around." And then he left, walking out of the store as though nothing had happened. The only evidence of his visit were the pale bruises beginning to form on Hunter's wrist.

When Dustin came back into the front, the wolf was already gone.

Hunter was seated on the couch, his face buried in his hands, when Cam walked into the room. The samurai wasn't surprised to see his brother, more along the lines of worried. He went and stood right in front of the thunder ranger, gazing down at him.

"Something wrong?" he asked softly. For a moment, Hunter didn't move and then he slowly looked up at Cam, blue eyes intense with an emotion Cam never thought he would see in Hunter Bradley. Despair.

"We have one twisted family," he mumbled with a sigh. Cam cocked his head to one side and Hunter dropped his gaze to the floor. "Kaido was my biological father. Luke is his son, meaning he's the one I killed 300 years ago. He's out to kill us for it."

"But that was an accident," Cam said softly. "You never meant to kill him."

"Doesn't matter." Hunter shook his head, rubbing at his eyes. "I'm tired of fighting. Lothor and his goons are one thing. This whole family feud though…that's another."

"Wait," Cam muttered. "You're biological father was Kaido?" Hunter nodded and the samurai pulled a face. "Why didn't he just kill you when you were little?"

"Dunno. He left me with Luke. That was bad enough. I guess he wanted to kill me himself, when I knew who he really was."

"Or who you really are."

"None of this would have ever happened if I—"

"Don't even start," Cam interrupted, placing his hand over Hunter's mouth. "Whether you started it or not doesn't matter anymore. That was then. This is now. We're going to live through this."

"You said that last time," Hunter mumbled around Cam's hand.

"But the difference is that this time Kaido is already dead," the samurai replied, embracing his bother gently. Hunter rested his head against Cam's chest with a soft sigh, allowing himself to be comforted.

"We're going to fight, and we're going to win," Cam whispered. "He's not going to hurt you anymore." Hunter's breath caught in his throat and Cam would feel the tremor that ran through his form. "That's what's bothering you the most, right?" Cam whispered. "Just as Blake was bothered when Ed came back." He tightened the embrace, bowing his head and closing his eyes. "He's not going to hurt you anymore."

There were footsteps on the stairs and Cam glanced over at both Tori and Shane, giving them a warning look, daring them to say anything. The room remained silent. Cam looked back down at Hunter, who hadn't moved, his eyes closed. _You're not alone, Aricudo._

"Hunter can't keep running out like this," Dustin groaned as Blake came back to the counter after helping a customer. Blake shot him a glare and the yellow ranger rolled his eyes.  
And then he widened them when he saw what was outside the shop. "You know, I'm getting a major sense of déjà vu," he muttered, elbowing Blake in the ribs.

Blake put his mouth to his wrist, "Hey Cyber Cam…we could use some help."

"Help's on it's way…"

"Thanks."

The two rangers morphed, and then chaos ensued.


	13. Chapter 13

Cam, Hunter, Tori and Shane jumped into the masses of kelzaks and Ashnazi, joining Blake and Dustin. Nobody said anything as they fought, realizing that they were completely outnumbered, but then remembering that they had been outnumbered before and that had never stopped them. Cam turned, kicking aside a kelzaks and throwing a punch at the head of an Ashnazi.

"I don't like this," Hunter murmured to his wolf brother, slamming his fist into the chest of one of Lothor's black and red goons. "I thought they weren't supposed to work together…"

"Perhaps the kitty forgot to tell my uncle that," Cam growled. He flipped out of the way of an oncoming blade, distancing himself from the crimson ranger.

Kelly watched from the doorway of her store, a frown on her face. Her eyes swept the group, landing on two figures standing off to the side, observing the fight. One was obviously an evil space ninja…not very many people had green skin…but the other was just a simple human. Who looked a lot like Hunter, aside from the malice that showed in his face.

"Hey! Dustin! Behind you!" Tori called, warning her friend of the Ashanzi behind him. he turned, blocking the blade and throwing the man over his shoulder, but was then thrown into the ground by something else.

Shane and Tori, standing back to back, cried out as something slammed into them, knocking them to the ground. And when they got back to their feet, they were surprised to find that the Ashnazi were gone, as were the Kelzaks…and Blue Bay Harbor in general. There was nothing but darkness surrounding them.

Blake turned when he heard Shane and Tori's cries, but was surprised to see them nowhere. In fact, Dustin was gone as well. He turned back in shock, calling to Hunter. "Hey! The Winds are gone!"

Both Hunter and Cam glanced at him, noticing that he spoke the truth. Hunter made his way through the kelzaks to his brother, leaving Cam to take care of the last few Ashnazi. But there was something else there instead.

"I thought I told you not to interfere with Alchmed and Aricudo," the samurai growled as the cat attacked him.

"Hmm…must have slipped my mind…" They grappled for a moment, Cam gaining the upper hand and flinging the cat aside. She pounced, slamming him into the ground again. He gave a cry of pain as he demorphed, grabbing the cat's wrist before she could claw at his face.

Hunter turned, but was overrun with kelzaks. Beside him, Blake was in the same predicament. They could do nothing but watch and try not to get skewered.

Cam's amulet was once again torn from his neck and thrown aside, but that didn't stop the samurai. He kicked the cat in the chest, forcing her off him and jumping to his feet. In an instant the cat was fighting off a jet black wolf. Her claws sank into his shoulder just as his teeth tore into her neck.

The cat dropped to the ground, twitching, gasping. And then it lay still. Cam turned, growling, his hackles raised as he bared his teeth at the remaining kelzaks.

Chaos ensued.

~&~

Shane turned slowly, demorphing as he searched the surroundings. There was nothing there aside from himself and Tori and… "Dustin!" he cried, dropping to his knees beside his friend. The yellow ranger, already demorphed, didn't move.  
"What's wrong with him?" Tori asked, coming to kneel on Dustin's other side. For a moment, Shane was silent, looking his friend over.

"He's not breathing," he whispered in horror.

~&~

"Blake!" Hunter called, gaining his brother's attention. The navy ranger glanced over at him, giving a short nod. And then the two of them jumped into the air at the same time, spinning around to slam into all the kelzaks surrounding them.

The drones were gone. All that remained was Lothor and Luke…but they had the ace.

Luke tightened his grip on Cam, the blade at the samurai's throat wickedly sharp. Blood ran down Cam's face from the injury on his head, and his dark eyes gazed at the two thunder rangers dazedly. "Well, now Hunter," Luke said, smiling slightly. "What do you think of this?"

Hunter said nothing, and beside him, Blake did the same. They stood their ground, absently noticing the kelzaks and Ashnazi circling around them.

"Nothing to say, eh?" Luke taunted. "We've gotten rid of your wind friends, and now I can be rid of the wolves."

"Let him go, Luke," Hunter growled.

"And why, dear brother, would I do that?" Luke asked, the blade lowering somewhat. Cam swallowed, trying to ignore the stabbing pain in his head but found it near impossible to do so. He hated feeling helpless…

There was silence from the thunders, and Luke smiled. "Of course, I could just come back for the two of you later…but who's to say that you won't just kill me then? I've got you right where I want you."

~&~

"Come on, Dustin," Shane murmured. "Breathe." Tori could only watch in concern as Shane forced more air into the earth ninja's lungs.

~&~

Cam screamed in pain as the knife was embedded in his gut. Luke smiled, twisting the knife slightly, laughing as Cam jerked in his hold. Hunter cried out as well, yelling for his wolf-brother even as the navy ranger turned his head away from the sight.

The blade was wrenched from Cam, blood splattering on Luke's shirt sleeves. He released his hold on the samurai, pure joy on his face as he watched Cam slide to the ground, where he immediately curled up on his side, his face contorted in pain.

"Fare well," Luke said, his voice sing-songly. "I'll come back for you, dear brother, later." And with that, both Luke and Lothor disappeared.

Both Hunter and Blake demorphed, running to Cam's side. The crimson ranger dropped to his knees, murmuring softly. Cam gasped in pain, tears running down his face. Blake stood back, watching, his face grieved as he looked down at the green amulet he held in his hands.


	14. Chapter 14

Shane sat back, exhausted in his efforts to get Dustin breathing again, but seemingly to no avail. The yellow wind ranger was dying, and there was nothing either Tori or Shane could do about it. They didn't want to lose their friend, but they didn't know how to save them. Cam was the 'team medic' so to speak, they weren't.

And then, beside them, Dustin gave a retching gasp, coughing slightly as he fought for air. Both conscious winds jumped, spinning to care for their friend again.

~&~

"Cam, hush, it'll be alright," Hunter whispered, covering the samurai's injury with a trembling hand. Cam shook his head, his face tight with pain as he gasped for breath.

"Hunter," Blake muttered, looking around them. Hunter glanced at his brother, and then turned back to Cam. "Hunter, we've got to get out of here," Blake said.

"We can't move him, bro," Hunter replied. He knew they had to leave, he knew the Ashnazi and the kelzaks would be back for them. But they couldn't move Cam…he was already dying where he lay. Moving him would only serve to make matters worse.

"I know that," Blake whispered. He let his gaze sweep around them again, his face grim as his eyes settled on the samurai lying in front of him.

"I don't know what to do," Hunter whispered, his voice choked. Blake glanced at him, averting his eyes when he saw the tears running down his brother's face. There were times when one could comfort…and then times when comfort just wouldn't do. The only thing that would sooth Hunter's mind was the knowledge that Cam would survive.

And that couldn't be given by just anyone.

~*~

"Dustin," Shane muttered, his hand on Dustin's chest. "Can you hear me?" The yellow ranger moaned, moving slightly. Tori bit her lip, not knowing if that was a good sign or a bad one.

"Dustin," Shane repeated. "Come on, say something, man."

"Where?" Dustin coughed, not being able to go on as he opened his eyes slightly.

"Are we?" Shane finished. "You know, that's a mighty fine question…" He sat back, pulling his friend into a seated position and then thinking he probably shouldn't have when Dustin gasped in pain, nearly falling over again.

Tori steadied him, kneeling at his side. "You alright?"

"Been better," Dustin coughed. He looked around them, seeing nothing but darkness, and groaned. "So…how do we get out?"

"Dunno," Shane muttered. "I really dunno…"

~&~

Cam jerked slightly, giving a short cry of pain. Hunter closed his eyes, only to open them again when an overwhelming sense of peace came over him. Blake was at his side, staring at something to the left of them, his dark eyes wide with wonder.

Hunter turned, smiling slightly as Okami walked slowly towards them. She reached out, touching his cheek and he leaned towards her.

"My child," she whispered. "All is well."

"Okami," Hunter murmured.

"He will live, Aricudo. Don't worry. He will live." She reached down and brushed her fingers against Cam's brow. The samurai sighed slightly, quieting, the pain vanishing from his face. She turned, her gaze settling on Blake.

"You protect them," she said quietly. "Keep my children safe." Blake nodded and she turned. "All is well."

~&~

"Well…what now?" Tori asked as she paced. Dustin stared up at her, caring enough not to answer. Shane merely shrugged.

"What's that?" Dustin suddenly asked, pointing off into the darkness. There was something there…something that looked somewhat familiar.

"Isn't that that monster thing that Lothor set on Cam?" Tori asked back.

"Didn't we kill that?" Shane asked.

"Haven't we asked enough questions?" Dustin muttered.

"Ninja Storm, Ranger Form, Ha!"

Nothing happened. Shane looked around at his two friends and sighed. "You know what…this sucks."


	15. Chapter 15

Blake silently watched as Hunter pressed his jacket to Cam's abdomen, wrapped protectively around his wolf-brother. Turning away, he scanned the battlefield for the missing Winds, and upon not finding them, placed his wrist to his mouth. "Blake to Shane."

He frowned at the lack of response, his eyes moving to the sky, eyeing the dark clouds that were coming in. Trying again, he got no answer and moved on to call Dustin and Tori. Discouraged, Blake turned back to Hunter, his arm falling to his side. "What now?"

Hunter stood, cradling Cam to his chest, his hands and clothing stained with blood. Although he was no longer bleeding, the gaping wound and the sheer immensity of lost blood was enough to leave Cam in serious danger. "We go back to Ops," the crimson ranger answered softly. "There's nothing we can do here."

Kelly came out of the store then, her face one of pure worry. "Is he going to be alright?" she asked, one hand coming to cover her mouth as the other motioned to the limp green ranger. There was silence from the two thunders and Kelly gave a short nod. "I'll see you later then."

Blake nodded and they were gone in two crimson and navy streaks.

~&~

"Ow," Tori moaned, shifting slightly where she lay on the rubble of where the ninja school had once been. She didn't even bother trying to get up; she hurt too much. Beside her, Shane propped himself up against a boulder, pulling a limp and unresponsive Dustin onto his lap with a frown.

"What happened?" he muttered just loud enough to be heard over the rising wind, absently wiping a trail of blood off his cheek.

Tori groaned, shaking her head. "Dunno. One minute Mr. Big-and-Scary is beating the crap out of us, and the next, we're here. I'm confused…and I hurt."

Shane muttered something incoherently and then moved his morpher close to his mouth. "Shane to Blake," he groaned, closing his eyes and leaning his head against the rock. Above them, the clouds were rapidly gathering, promising torrents of rain.

"Holy crap! Where are you guys! I've been trying to contact you forever!"

Shane would have laughed at Blake's frantic concern had he not been so unbelievably sore. "Um…we were…somewhere. And now…we're outside Ops…and…" he didn't finish, feeling suddenly light-headed. He didn't get an answer from the Thunder Ranger but a few seconds later both Hunter and Blake were kneeling in front of them.

Opening his eyes, Shane eyed the two of them, frowning at the blood covering Hunter's clothing. "We've had some problems of our own as well," the crimson ranger muttered, seeing the look as he gently took Dustin from Shane's hold. Blake glanced at his older brother and then moved to help a slightly incoherent blue ranger to her feet.

"Does anyone care enough to inform me as to what is going on?" Sensei asked, placing his paws on his hips. For the first time in a long, long while he was feeling out of the loop.  
Hunter, startled from his thoughts, turned blue eyes on the guinea pig. "Lothor and the Ashnazi are getting smarter," he replied, seating himself on the couch.

Blake reentered the room, having taken care of the Winds. "And stronger," he added, nodding to Sensei before staring thoughtfully at the wall. The ninja teacher knew better than to harass the two emotionally strained teens, and he wandered off, deeming it safer to check on his son and the other rangers than venture into the unknown territories the two thunders were presenting.

"So, what do we do about it?" Blake asked as soon as Sensei had left the room. He rubbed at his face, not caring that his brother was seeing his stress. He was tired, that's all there was to it. Hunter, though, merely gave a noncommittal grunt, leaving the navy ranger to hold back a weary sigh.

Shane stumbled into the room, collapsing on the couch while giving the two brothers a questioning look. As one, they ignored it and looked away. "Is Cam okay?" the red ranger asked, not bothering to mask the concern in his voice.

Hunter gave a low growl, but didn't answer. "He'll be fine," Blake muttered. "Hopefully…"

"What happened?" Shane asked, his gaze going in between the two.

"We could ask you the same question," Hunter mumbled, blue eyes looking with blank curiosity at his friend.

"Trade a story for a story," was the only reply.

Hunter looked away and Blake bit back another sigh. He suddenly had the feeling that if he kept holding back sighs he would explode from unexhaled air. And that would be a rather upsetting way to die. "Luke got a hold of Cam," he explained slowly. "Put a knife through his gut."

"What!" Shane exclaimed. "And he's going to alright after that!"

"Yes," Blake said shortly, dark eyes meeting Shane's in an unwavering stare. "Lady Okami seemed to know what she was doing." Shane stared at the navy ranger for a long moment before glancing at their silent companion. But Hunter just ignored him, his gaze unfocused.

The storm was getting closer, and even Blake was becoming a little agitated.

"Dustin, Tori and I were…transported…to a big black place," Shane mumbled, his face scrunching up as he realized how stupid that sounded. Blake, though, just waved him along, glancing at the stairs as he did so.

"Dustin wasn't breathing when we found him." That, at least, got him two shocked faces. "But we managed to fix that problem and then Mr. Big-and-Scary came to beat the crap out of us. We couldn't morph."

"Everyone will be fine, though, right?" Hunter asked, his voice soft. But Shane was glad that the wolf now seemed just a little more focused.

"Yeah, seems that way," he replied. "Nasty bruises though…" He paused. "And I think we should keep a close eyes on Dustin. He's worrying me."

The two Thunders nodded, simultaneously looking towards the stairs as the first crack of thunder was heard. "Great, rain," Shane mumbled, "What more do we need?"

"Hunter?" Blake muttered, looking over at his older brother.

"No," was the firm reply.

"Please?" the navy ranger whined. Blue eyes met his in a sharp glare, and he retaliated with a pout and large puppy eyes. "With sugar on top?"

"No."

"Pretty, pretty, pretty, pretty please?" The puppy eyes got larger and the pouting lip started to tremble.

"Ugh."

Shane merely looked on, rather confused as Blake pleaded with his brother for something far from his knowledge. "Fine," Hunter finally mumbled after a few more minutes and what had to be two hundred more "pretties". Blake gave a hoot of joy, enticing a reluctant smile out of Hunter, and then bolted up the stairs, his brother slowly following.

Tori came into the room, giving Shane an inquiring look. "What was that about?" he didn't need to ask as to what she was talking about. Shrugging, he got to his feet and gestured towards the stairs. "What say you we go find out?"

"I'm against spying on people," the blue rangers replied, but she following him nonetheless.

Outside, though, the sight that presented itself to them had Tori holding back giggles and Shane outright grinning. Blake was absently tossing a crackling ball of pure lightning into the air, taunting the wolf that was prancing about his feet. And then he threw it, the wolf giving chase before launching itself into the air to catch the ball in its mouth, only to fall to the ground in a twitching, frizzled ball of fur. Blake burst into a fit of uncontrollable laughter and Tori couldn't help but giggle.

"I always wondered why his hair always looked so messy," she laughed. Blue eyes turned their way momentarily before the wolf collided with Blake, knocking the boy into the mud.

Shane smiled absently as Hunter, once again human, and Blake wrestled, lightning lighting the clouds above them, soaked to the bone by the relentlessly pounding rain. "I guess the rest of us take for granted the fact that our elements are always around," he muttered, catching Tori's attention.

"You're right," she replied. "They hardly ever get to enjoy their elements. It's got to be amazing."

"I'm not sure that's quite the word for it," Shane mumbled as lighting streaked down from the rolling clouds to paint a pattern around the two Thunders, sparks dancing around the brothers.

Reluctantly, both Tori and Shane turned and walked back inside, leaving the two brothers to themselves. They both dropped unceremoniously onto the couch, Shane groaning as his battered body protested that action. "We're not doing very well, are we?" he asked after a long moment of silence.

Tori didn't answer for a second. "I think we'd be able to win, but Cam and Hunter are losing their…courage, I guess."

"Maybe," the red ranger sighed. "But maybe it isn't a matter of courage. Maybe it's just a matter of mentality."

Tori gave him an odd look, running her hand through her damp hair. "How so?"

"Blake couldn't fight Ed," Shane said slowly, working it out in his head as he was speaking. "Not because Ed was stronger, but because he wasn't used to fighting back when it came to him." There was a long moment of silence, Shane biting his lip. "I think it's the same for Hunter and Luke."

"And Cam?" Tori asked.

"Just isn't used to his brother holding back."

Tori remained silent, her eyes focused on the red ranger. And then Blake and Hunter walked back into the room, drenched and splattered (or covered in Blake's case) with mud. But both of them seemed more relaxed than they had before their escapade in the rain, and Hunter was even wearing an easy smile to match Blake's radiant grin.

"I am going to shower," Blake proclaimed as he ran into the Ops only bathroom before Hunter could claim it first.

"Hey!" the crimson ranger yelled and then he sighed. "Brat," he grumbled although his voice held a fair bit of affection in it. He glanced at the two seated Winds, grinning crookedly. "I'm gonna go check that other brother of mine. Ba-bye." And, with that, he wandered off, leaving the two Winds to stare after him.

"Cam? Where'd you go?" Hunter mumbled, frowning at Cam's empty bed. And then he rolled his eyes, dropping to the ground to lay on his stomach, his head resting on one arm. "You okay?" he asked the wolf curled under the bed.

Cam merely blinked at him.

"Right," Hunter sighed. "Stupid question. Let's try this again; are you going to be alright?"

_Maybe. Are you going to be able to fight Luke?_

"Maybe," Hunter answered. "But this isn't about me."

_Right. It's about all of us_

"At least Lothor is holding back somewhat," Hunter mumbled.

_No. He's just content to let Luke and the Ashnazi finish us off._ There was a short pause. _Aricudo? Are you okay?_

Hunter merely blinked at him.

_Right._ Cam sighed, his long pink tongue flicking over sharp canines. _Stupid question. Are you going to be okay?_

"There's nothing wrong with me," Hunter replied, ignoring the fact that Sensei and Shane were standing in the doorway.

_Like heck there isn't._

Hunter blinked in surprise. "Alchmed-" Cam reached forward and bit Hunter's wrist, ignoring the pain coursing though his body at that action.

_Stop trying to fool everyone, including yourself, because it obviously isn't working very well._ He gave his brother's captured wrist a sharp shake. _Maybe you ought to think about that._ And then he let go, curling back up with an almost inaudible whimper.

Hunter gazed at the black wolf for a long moment and then sighed. "Fine. You want anything to eat?"

_No. Now get lost and let me sleep._

Chuckling, Hunter got to his feet. "Fine, fine. I'm going, I'm going." And then he turned, sliding past both Shane and Sensei to escape into the bathroom which Blake had just vacated.


	16. Chapter 16

"Hey man," Shane said as Dustin walked into the front room. It had been two days since they had nearly lost both the Wind and Samurai and neither of them seemed up to doing much of anything yet, ranger healing powers or not. In fact, Cam had hardly even come out from under the bed. "You okay?" the red ranger asked as his friend dropped onto one of the many cushions.

"No," Dustin muttered. Shane said nothing, just gazing at the yellow ranger in concern. Dustin shook his head, grimacing as he did so. "I don't get it, man. I'm just so tired…"

"Ever think that could be a sign that you need sleep?" Shane asked after a short moment of silence.

Dustin gave him a bland look, his eyes betraying his exhaustion. "Too tired to sleep," he murmured. Sighing, he closed his eyes and curled up on the cushion. "Good thing my parents are out of town. They would have been worried sick by now."

_As if we're not._

"Hey Cam," Dustin nearly whispered as the black wolf limped into the room and dropped at their feet, looking up at Shane expectantly.

"Tori and Blake went shopping, as we've just about cleaned out your kitchen," Shane commented with an absent wave of his hand. "Hunter's around here somewhere."

_Dustin?_ Cam asked, rolling onto his side with a huff.

"You know," Dustin said, completely ignoring Cam's silent inquiry. "They're still hunting the wolves. What do we do about that?"

"Dunno," another voice joined, and all three looked up at Hunter in greeting. "Hey Cam, how ya feeling?"

_Blah._

Hunter rolled his eyes. "Dustin?" he asked.

"Blegh," Dustin replied, causing Hunter to sigh in exasperation. Cam only turned his eyes back to the yellow ranger.

After a long moment of silence, Cam slowly got to his feet, gently biting the leg of Dustin's pants and tugging insistently._Come on. Let's go see if we can't figure out what's wrong with you._

"Don't wanna move," Dustin replied. Cam growled and he chuckled softly. "Fine, fine." He got to his feet and followed the wolf.

"You should probably eat something, Cam," Hunter said as the two slowly walked off.

Dark, brown-black eyes met blue for half a second. _If Blake brings back a raw steak, let me know._ And then the yellow ranger and the samurai wolf were gone, disappearing into one of the back rooms.

Shane remained silent, watching as Hunter considered Cam's last words. "You know," the thunder said slowly. "A raw steak doesn't sound so bad right now." Shane pulled a face and Hunter laughed. "Sorry man. But, hey, what can I say?"

"You could day that you'll help us with the groceries," a laden down Tori said as she nearly tripped down the stairs. Both Shane and Hunter jumped up and relieved Tori and Blake of their burdens, heading back towards the kitchen.

"Hey, bro," Hunter called back to the navy ranger. "Did you happen to get any raw steaks?" His grin caught Blake off guard, as well as the question itself, so it took the boy a few minutes to answer.

"Um…yeah. A few, why?" he asked back, ignoring Tori's similarly confused look and Shane's eye rolling.

Hunter's grin merely intensified. "Oh, no reason," he replied as he dug around in the bags until his found one of the mentioned steaks. Plopping it wetly onto a clean plate, he held it at shoulder level and looked towards the door just as Cam appeared. "What do you say?" he asked as the Cam eyed the contents of the plate in Hunter's hand hungrily.

_Give me the food before I bite you?_

Everyone laughed and Hunter set the plate on the ground. "Close enough," he said as he watched his wolf-brother devour the steak. "What's wrong with Dustin?" he asked after a few minutes of putting away groceries.

_Don't know._ Cam replied thoughtfully. _I had Cyber Cam give him a sedative to help him sleep._ He paused._ Just keep an eye on him for a while._ Finishing his steak, the wolf sat back, licking his face with his long tongue._Yum,_ he commented after a long moment.

Everyone grinned, but the smiles didn't last long. "Well, since we're all here-Dustin aside-," Shane said, "Perhaps we ought to talk about what we're to do next."

"How many people are we going against?" Tori asked, running a hand through her hair.

"Too many," Blake answered.

_Not exactly,_ Cam muttered. _It's only Lothor, Luke and the Animal Control Services._

"Not to mention all of Lothor's and Luke's followers," Hunter groaned.

_Okay, so there's more than we're used to,_ Cam said slowly. _That's no reason to give up._

"If we give up, someone is bound to end up dead," Blake sighed. Nobody seemed to disagree with him there, although nobody also brought up the fact that, lately, they'd had a lot of near-death experiences while not giving up.

"Let's handle one thing at a time," Shane said, pulling his attention back to the topic on hand. "Lothor and Luke can come later. We've got to worry about the citizens or else the other two don't even matter anymore."

There was silence for a moment and then Blake turned, filling a bowl of water for the patiently waiting wolf at his feet. "If the wolves fight with the rangers…"

"Then maybe everyone will change their minds about them," Tori finished.

"What if the rangers outright protect the wolves?" Shane asked.

Hunter rolled his eyes. _Don't we owe them enough already?_ He silently asked Cam. The wolf gave him the disinterested look only a canine could give.

_Get over your pride, Aricudo, and take help when it comes to you._

_Don't look a gift horse in the mouth?_ Hunter asked, cocking his head to one side.

_Something like that._

"We've lost them," Tori murmured, although her annoyed tone was betrayed by the small smile on her face.

"If you ask me," Blake said, raising one brow. "Hunter's being a stubborn idiot, and Cam's berating him for it."

_You know your brother well,_ Cam said with an amused chuff.

Hunter just gave his little brother an annoyed looked and then sighed. "You're all just tag-teaming against me, aren't you?" he asked. There were no replies aside from four highly amused looks, and so Hunter frowned, turning to his little brother. "Give me one of those steaks, will you?"

"Are you planning on cooking it?" Blake asked as he made his way to the fridge.

"Now why would I do that?" Hunter asked in mock-horror. "Ruin a perfectly good piece of meat! Who do you think I am!"

Blake ignored the dramatics. "Then do me a favor and change to that pretty wolf form of yours. It's less disturbing that way."

"Oh," Hunter grinned. "You think I'm pretty."

Everyone else just groaned.

~&~

"How's it going, Cyber Cam?" Cam asked as he walked into the room, one arm wrapped around his middle.

"Dude, you're up and human again!" the cyber clone exclaimed. "That's good, 'cause I'm so not programmed to pick up telepathy."

Cam rolled his eyes, easing into the chair that Cyber Cam had so graciously vacated. "Where is everyone?" he asked, turning his eyes to the latest Zord updates.

"Dustin's still asleep, and everyone else is at Storm Chargers," Cyber Cam replied. "They considered it best not to split up."

"Good," Cam said, fingers flying over the keys. "Could you check on Dustin for me?" The clone left and Cam was left alone in silence.

"Cameron?" a voice to his left said softly.

"Yes, father?" Cam's eyes never left the screen.

The guinea pig flipped over onto his son's shoulder, and Cam could practically feel the concern coming off the furry body. "Is everything alright?"

"No," Cam replied honestly. His father said nothing, and so, with a sigh, he continued. "Lothor's teaming up with Luke and the Ashnazi, who were hard enough to beat on their own." He paused, looking at something on the screen. "Not only that, but the citizens of Blue Bay Harbor are all going on a massive wolf hut."

"And Dustin's running a temperature of 103 degrees," Cyber Cam added as he came back into the room.

Cam spun his chair around, turning dark eyes on his clone. "He's what?"

"Running a temperature of 103 degrees," Cyber Cam obediently repeated. "And that's not good," he added as an after effect.

"You are correct," Sensei said, jumping off his son's shoulder. "This is most serious."

The alarm chose that moment to go off, sound loudly throughout the cavern. "And that's what you call impeccable timing," Cam muttered. He turned to the screen and saw only Kelzacs and one of Lothor's dorky generals. There were no Ashnazi to be seen. "I'll take care of Dustin while the others take care of that," he said as he called the other rangers.


	17. Chapter 17

Three rifles were trained on the wolf that had just stopped running. The canine lifted its head, looking around as though it knew what danger it was in, but it also knew that it was perfectly fine. There was a rustle in a nearby bush and the three hunters were sure that the other wolf was coming to join them.

Instead, they were surprised when a bund of Kelzacs jumped out of the surrounding bush and the tan wolf growled, hackles raised.

"Take him down now," the obvious leader whispered to his two companions. "And then let's get the heck out of here."

There was the subtle click of a gun being cocked and the wolf whirled around, gazing at the three men with amazingly clear blue eyes, only to return its attention to the ever moving Kelzacs.

There was a sudden flash of dark blue and the hunters found themselves suspiciously weaponless. Shocked, they turned and found their guns in the hands of the navy thunder ranger.

"Tsk, tsk," Blake said, slapping the guns against the palm of his hand. "I don't think that's a good idea."

There was an annoyed bark off to the left somewhere and the ranger sighed. "Coming, coming," he muttered. He tossed the guns to the side, eyeing the three men through his visor. "Do me a favor and leave our wolves alone."

"Hey man," another voice said, and the red ranger kicked a few of the Kelzacs out of the way. "Who are they?"

"Just some of those people hunting down our wolves," Blake replied, still watching the hunters as Shane fought off the Kelzacs with the wolf.

"You know, that's just downright mean," another blue ranger, this one obviously female, exclaimed as she, too, joined in the fight.

"Those wolves have killed someone already!" one of the hunters exclaimed, pointing an accusing finger at the large canine knocking affectionately into Blake's legs.

"Ever wonder if there could have been a reason for that?" Tori asked, coming to stand next to Blake, the Kelzacs gone.

"Like what!"

Blake dropped to his knees beside the wolf, smiling slightly as Hunter nudged his shoulder. "Ed Stamps was trying to kill someone when the wolves killed him," he said slowly. Both Shane and Tori glanced at each other, as did the other hunters.

"Who?" the lead hunter asked, suspicion clear in his voice.

There was a long moment of silence, broken by Hunter's soft whine. "Me," Blake answered. "He was trying to kill me." Hunter promptly began licking the ranger's helmet until Blake managed to, laughingly, push him off. "Ugh. Watch it, this is dry-clean only!"

For a few minutes, the hunters merely watched the three rangers and the wolf, and then the leader sighed. "Okay. We'll pass the word along."

The rangers' morphers all went off then, startling the entire group. Shane turned his back on the group, holding his wrist to his mouth as his visor snapped open. "Wind here," he said. "What's up?"

"Lothor sent another one of his goons," Cam's voice replied. "Down near the track. No Ashnazi to be seen though."

"Got it," Shane replied, turning to the others and signaling them to leave as soon as his visor was back in place. "Gotta go," he said, and the three ninja power rangers bowed to the men before streaking off.

Hunter, left alone with the three men who had earlier been trying to kill him, gazed at them for a short moment. And then he dropped to his fore-knees in a canine simulation of a bow, turning and running through the trees shortly thereafter.

The hunters, completely surprised by this action, glanced at each other before shrugging.

"Cyber Cam," Cam said, getting to his feet with a wince. "Monitor the rangers for me. I'll take care of Dustin." The cyber clone nodded, sitting down at the massive computer.  
Cam sighed and went into the back room that he had dubbed as the medical bay. Hunter and Blake were currently staying in the next room over, and his own was only one down from there. Frankly, besides the last training room, the cave was getting slightly crowded. "Dustin?" he called softly, walking into the dark room. There was no answer from the still form on the bed, and Cam bit his lip.

Moving to the earth ninja's side, his concern did nothing but increase. Dustin's face was far too pale despite his fever flushed cheeks and the sheen of perspiration, and he had an obvious difficulty breathing. "Dustin," Cam said again, gently pushing damp hair away from his friend's face.

And, yet again, there was no answer. Cam sighed, snaking one arm beneath Dustin's shoulders and raising him up slightly in an attempt to ease his breathing. Instead, the yellow ranger was caught in a violent coughing fit which wracked his body and brought flecks of crimson blood to his chapped lips.

Cam released the breath he hadn't realized he'd been holding when Dustin finally collapsed limply against his chest, his breath still labored but not as ragged as it had been.

The rangers all piled into the main room of Ops, instantly converging around Cyber Cam to report to him the damage that had been done on their respective Zords. Obviously, without Dustin the Megazord could not be assembled, and therefore they had all taken a bit of a beating when Lothor had blown his goon up to an immense size.

Hunter hung back for a moment and then disappeared down the hall. Blake glanced at him for a second and then sighed, deciding it best not to bother with it.

Arriving at the room Dustin was currently staying in, Hunter leaned against the doorframe with a frown. Cam, cradling the limp ranger against his chest, looked over at him, not even bothering to hide his concern. "What's wrong with him?" the crimson ranger asked softly.

Cam's eyes slid shut and he gave a long, weary sigh. "I don't know," he replied at length. "But I think it would be wise to do another scan." Hunter nodded, coming around to the side of the bed and taking Cam's place as the samurai slipped out of the way. "Keep him propped up; it eases his breathing somewhat." And then he disappeared out the door.

In the front room, Cam let his eyes run over the tired group of teens before turning to the red ranger. "Shane," he said, effectively gaining Shane's attention.

"Yeah, man," the air ninja replied. "What's up?"

"Do you know if Dustin has any severe allergies?" Cam asked slowly, not taking his eyes off the ranger.

Shane blinked, confused by the question. "Um…no, he doesn't. Why?"

Rubbing wearily at his eyes beneath his glasses, Cam deemed it safer not to answer that question. "And he just quit breathing when you were transported to wherever you were transported to?" he asked.

"Yes," Shane replied, now eyeing his friend in concern. "Why?"

Cam said nothing, only gave an absent wave of his hand as he made his way back to the medical bay. "Take Dustin to the front room and lay him on the table by the computer," he muttered to Hunter, who was watching him with wide, blue eyes.

Nodding, the thunder slipped his free arm beneath the earth ninja's knees and gently lifted him out of the bed, the blankets falling to the mattress in a heap. Hunter silently followed Cam back into the front room, ignoring everyone's exclaims of shock and concern as he did as he had been told and then backed away from the table. Cam, biting his lip and realizing that he should probably stop doing that, sat down at the computer and silently pressed a few keys.

"Cam?" Tori asked. "What's wrong with Dustin?"

"I'll tell you as soon as I find out," Cam muttered, staring resolutely at the screen. "Did your fight go well?" he asked, his eyes skimming over the results of the scan.

"Fine," Blake answered, dark eyes going between his two brothers and the yellow ranger. "And the wolves should no longer be hunted."

"Good," Cam murmured, eyes narrowing at the screen as he hurriedly typed something. "That's…not possible," he muttered to himself, although the others heard him anyway.

"What's not?" Shane asked as Cam slowly got to his feet, the samurai rubbing at his own injury with a wince.

Cam was silent for a long moment, his eyes on the yellow ranger. "I scanned him yesterday," he said softly. "And infections don't spring up that fast. His entire left lung is inflamed."

Tori ran a hand through her hair. "What's that mean?" she asked, although it was likely that she already knew the answer.

"It means that unless I can find some way to treat this, then Dustin will die," Cam replied. Take him back to his room, Aricudo.

He turned away as Hunter did as he was told, staring at the computer screen. "Shane, Blake, Tori," he said slowly. "Go back to Storm Chargers and tell Kelly that there's a chance Dustin won't be coming in for work for a while. I'll send Hunter by in a while."

"How do you want us to explain this?" Shane asked, heading reluctantly towards the stairs.

"Tell her the truth, I guess," was the samurai's only reply.

"The IV's got antibiotics that should fight the infection," Cam explained as Hunter watched him slide the needle into Dustin's arm. "And it will keep him from getting dehydrated."  
Hunter nodded, slowly settling Dustin down against the pillows and backing off. "What now?" he asked.

Cam sighed. "We wait," he replied. Turning, he headed for the door, motioning Hunter to follow. "We go join the others at Storm Chargers and have Cyber Cam inform us of any changes." The clone nodded, heading for the room they had just vacated.

"Is it okay to leave him?" Hunter asked, climbing the stairs beside his wolf-brother.

"There's nothing more we could do for him there," Cam replied. "Besides, I haven't been out of Ops for almost four days. I need some fresh air."

Nearly half an hour later, the two entered the shop, heading for Blake who was leaning against the counter. "Hey bro," Hunter said, ruffling Blake's hair before heading towards the back room.

Blake stuck his tongue out at his brother's back, muttering, "I hate it when he does that," and then turned to Cam. "How's Dustin?" Shane, Tori and Kelly all seemed to materialize at those two words and Cam shrugged.

"Won't know until we see some change," he replied honestly.

Blake frowned, looking over the tech support and noticing just how pale he was. "How are you?" he asked.

Laughing, Cam matched Blake by leaning against the counter. "Fine. It's just a long walk from Ops."

"You walked all the way here?" Tori asked in concern, obviously thinking about the grave injury he had suffered not even a week before.

"Ran, actually," Cam replied as Hunter reappeared, handing him a coke. "Felt really good."

"Poor Alchmed's been cooped up in that cave for far too long," Hunter muttered with a small smile. Cam, like Blake, stuck his tongue out at him.

"Ugh," Hunter said, rolling his eyes. "Little brothers," he muttered, causing everyone to give small laughs. It was a little awkward to hear Hunter referring to Cam as his "little" brother, even if he was technically older.

Kinda, sorta.

After a small moment of silence, Cam looked up, fingering the coke can as he gazed at his friends. "Don't worry," he said, smiling as he did so. "Dustin's strong. He'll survive this. He'll be fine."

And the others could do nothing but smile at Cam's absolute confidence.


	18. Chapter 18

Cam rubbed wearily at his eyes, knowing that eventually he would have to get some sleep, but still reluctant to do so. The Zord repairs were almost done, and he would have to check on Dustin in a little while anyway, so, really, there was no point in sleeping yet, right?

If his father or either of the Thunders ever heard that, he was as good as dead.

But with Dustin still out of it, although steadily improving, the Rangers had been taking quite a beating, meaning the Zords were in poor shape. And Cam just didn't trust Cyber Cam to fix them to their finest potential. Not that he shouldn't trust him, what with having programmed the clone himself, but there were limits.

And, apparently, there were limits to how late Blake would let him stay up as well.

"Do you realize what time it is?" the Navy ranger grumbled, running a hand through his sleep tousled hair.

"Nearly three," Cam answered candidly. "Why do you ask?" Blake growled. He literally growled, and Cam blinked up at him in surprise. "Last I checked, the growling was what us wolves did…"

"Shut up and go to bed," Blake snapped.

"Oh, not a morning person?"

"Shut. Up."

"Guess that answered that."

Cam was jerked into a standing position by the hand clamped to the back of his collar. "Go. To. Bed."

"And all of you call me the 'mother hen'…" Cam mumbled, flinching a little under Blake's heavy glare. "Fine. I'll get some sleep…" He paused. "How's Hunter?"

"Sleeping. Unlike you."

"You're not asleep either," Cam pointed out. "In my defense, I was actually doing something other than grumbling at my teammates."

"I'll do more than grumble if you don't shut up and go to bed."

_If both of you don't shut up and get some rest, then I promise I will bite you._

The two turned towards the door, and Cam grinned at his wolf-brother seated there, tail wrapped firmly around his paws. "Hullo. Care to join your brother in this argument?"

_No._

"Always so blunt," Cam said wistfully, letting his eyes rise to the ceiling. "Honestly though, I will go to bed. When I'm done."

"And when will that be?" Blake groaned. "In a few hours? Tomorrow morning?"

"Last I recalled, it is tomorrow morning."

Blake turned and looked at Hunter in exasperation. Oddly enough, it seemed as though the wolf were trying to keep from laughing, blue eyes highly amused. Cam chuckled and turned back to his computer, about to get to work again. However, before he could even type a word, the screen went blank. He stared at it for a moment before looking at Hunter in confusion.

Only to find him with the plug hanging from his mouth.

"Oh, you did NOT just unplug my computer."

Blake dropped to the ground, leaning up against the couch with a yawn. As tired as he was, this was bound to be interesting. Touching Cam's computer resulted in a very long lecture. Unplugging it…that was calling for war.

He listened to his brothers' banter before his eyelids grew heavy with the need for sleep. It had been a long day, and it was turning into an even longer night. He slipped onto his side, curling up slightly with a yawn. Forget the ongoing argument; he was tired!

_Blake?_ Hunter asked, glancing at his younger brother. When Blake only gave a small groan in reply, the wolf gave an amused chuff and sauntered over. _I have a feeling that we're going to be unable to move him from this spot._

"Why do I have that same feeling?" Cam asked, looking down at the Thunder curled up on the floor, happily snoozing. "He's going to catch his death of a cold if he stays there."

_No, he won't._ Hunter curled up around his little brother, gazing up at Cam. _You should get some sleep as well._ He paused. _Unless you feel like you really need to go and reboot your computer tonight._

Cam glared. No, he Glared. Capital G. But it soon died away and he gave a yawn. Glancing at his computer for half a second, he shook his head, knowing that he had lost the argument. In fact, he realized, he had lost it the second Blake had walked into the room. Honestly, why did he even bother contradicting the Thunders?

He wandered out of the room, feeling Hunter's blue eyes on his back, and went to check on Dustin. The Crimson ranger was surprised when Cam came back into the front room, this time as a jet black wolf, dragging a blanket. Nrgh. Tired. was the only explanation he got as Cam dragged the blanket over Blake and curled up beside them.

Cam awoke later that morning to find that sometime in the night he had become Blake's pillow. Oddly enough, he really didn't mind, as he was far too tired to even want to think about getting up yet. Hunter was still there, sleeping on the other side of the Navy ranger, and eh could hear the soft sounds of sparring from the back training room. Which meant that Tori and Shane had to be there.

And that led him to wonder what time it was. Not that it really mattered. He wanted more sleep.

"Hey Cam," Shane said, seeing that the Samurai was awake. Never mind. Cam was never going to get to go back to sleep now that they knew he was awake. "You do realize it's almost noon, right?"

Cam just stared. Noon? And he was still tired? _Nrgh. Tired._

Shane and Tori both laughed, covering their mouths when Blake stirred but didn't wake. "What's up with you three?"

Again, Cam just stared. And then he seemed to remember something. _Hunter unplugged my computer._

Shane and Tori glanced at each other. Hunter had unplugged Cam's computer? And he was still alive? Of course, he hadn't exactly moved since they had come into Ops…and they really couldn't tell if he was breathing, what with Blake being in the way…

_I'm going to have to kill him for that._

Ah. He was still alive. For the time being, at least. "How's Dustin?" Tori asked, sitting down on the couch, careful not to wake the two Thunders.

_Um…the infection's nearly gone. But he hasn't woken up yet. And if he doesn't soon then I don't know what I'm going to do._

"He's bound to wake up soon," Shane frowned. "He's been out for nearly a week. His parents are getting home tomorrow. He has to wake up. I don't know what I'll do if he doesn't."

_Shut up and let me sleep,_ Hunter growled, tucking his head beneath his tail.   
Both Tori and Shane glanced at him, sharing a smile. "It's almost noon, Hunter. Maybe you should think about getting up."

Hunter opened one blue eye to glare up at him, and then glanced at Blake, curled up against Cam. _I've been replaced._ Cam gave an amused chuff, nudging Blake's shoulder, only to find that the Navy ranger absolutely refused to wake up. _You're going to need to do better than that. Blake could sleep through the Apocalypse._

_Somehow, I doubt that,_ Cam replied, snapping at Hunter's shoulder in reprimand.

"Shut up and let me sleep," Blake grumbled, throwing the blanket over his head and curling deeper into Cam's side. Shane and Tori glanced at each other before bursting out into laughter, not noticing when Hunter shifted forms and sat wearily on the floor, brushing a hand through his messy blond hair.

"You two are so alike it's creepy," Shane muttered as soon as he had managed to stop laughing.

"Creepy?" Hunter mumbled through a yawn. "Why's that?" Nobody answered him, so he turned his attention to his two brothers again. "Blake. You really do need to get up. We have things we need to do, ya know."

"Like?" Came the muffled reply.

Hunter thought for a moment, and then grinned. A few minutes later Blake began laughing, leaving Cam, Tori and Shane to only guess at what the wolf had silently told the Navy ranger. _Okay. Now I'm scared._ Cam muttered.

Hunter turned his grin towards him, and then pounced on his two brothers. Blake gave a startled yelp from beneath the blanket, and Cam managed to struggle out from under Hunter's dead weight. "You might want to get off him before he suffocates," Shane said to the elder Bradley, watching in amusement as Hunter tickled the blanket enveloped form of his younger brother, who was rolling helplessly in his cocoon, laughing uncontrollably.

Cam shook himself, his tail fluffing out as he jumped up on the couch to watch. They settled down after a short moment, Hunter pulling the blanket off his brother and wandering off to his room. Blake stayed on the ground for a few more minutes, staring up at Cam. "Hello, Cam. You might want to think about rebooting your computer and scanning the surrounding area for Lothor," he stated. And then he, and the other two Winds, scrambled out of the room, frightened away by Cam's angry growling.

"Did you really have to mention his computer?" Shane asked as soon as they had managed to escape the terror of an agitated Cam in wolf-mode.

Blake nodded. "Duh. Lothor's been really active lately. We need the computer to see if he's up to anything."

"You could have at least waited until we weren't in the room with you," Tori complained.

"Chicken," Blake murmured.


	19. Chapter 19

You didn't really drag me out to the mall to 'watch the babes', did you?" Cam asked in slight annoyance, glancing around at the crowded food court.

Blake shrugged, also looking around. "Dunno. Hunter's idea," he answered.

"If it was Hunter's idea, where is he?" Cam nearly growled. He hated crowded places. Especially places such as the mall.

Blake snickered, giving another shrug as he wandered over to one of the fast food lines, suddenly remembering he hadn't eaten breakfast…or lunch. Cam dejectedly followed, not bothering to purchase any of the food that Blake seemed to enjoy so much. They snagged a table and the Navy ranger immersed himself in devouring the life giving grease that was placed before him. Dark eyes glanced up at his wolf-brother as Cam stole a French fry, munching on it contemplatively.

"What?" Blake asked around a mouthful of hamburger, earning him a disapproving look from the Samurai. Rolling his eyes, he swallowed and then repeated the question. "What?"

"What's wrong with Hunter?" Cam asked. "He's been really…" he trailed off with a shrug.

Blake frowned at his food, not answered for a few minutes. Cam patiently waited, watching the young Bradley with slight concern. "It scares him," he finally muttered. "Almost losing us. I don't think he'd be able to handle it…" He didn't bother eating his food, finding that he was no longer hungry. "He can't lose anyone else."

Cam stayed silent, his lack of speech urging the Thunder on with his explanation.

"My father and Luke are…um, were, a lot alike," Blake muttered. "And let's face it, Ed wasn't exactly pulling in any awards for Father of the Year." He startled Cam by giving a wry grin. "Contrary to popular belief, you can remember what happened years ago." His face fell. "Especially if it was particularly traumatic."

Blake absently poked at his burger with a fry. "I was about five when Mom and Dad adopted me. Hunter came a little while after. He was…seven?" He paused. "And then Mom and Dad left and didn't come back."

Cam didn't know exactly what to think about what Blake was telling him. He didn't remember his own mother, except what he had seen of her when he had gone back in time.

"Hunter couldn't take it," Blake murmured, lost in thought. "He wouldn't talk, he wouldn't eat. He wouldn't even sleep. He was like, what? Nine at the time I guess?" Cam watched the Navy ranger in concern, noticing the melancholy mood about him. Blake looked up suddenly, smirking. "He snapped out of it when I ended up in the hospital after falling off a cliff."

"You fell off a cliff?" Cam asked in surprise.

"Well…I didn't mean to end up with a broken leg…" Blake laughed.

"You fell off a cliff _on purpose_?"

"It worked, didn't it?"

The Samurai said nothing to this, stealing another French fry and once again munching on it contemplatively. "You wanna stay here? Or can we leave?"

"Should we tell Hunter?" Blake asked, standing.  
"Where is Hunter?" Cam asked. Blake again shrugged, holding his wrist to his mouth. He had a short conversation with Hunter before, laughing, he turned back to Cam. "What?"

"Hunter made me promise not to let you back in Ops." And somehow, Cam wasn't really surprised.

"Stupid Aricudo."

"See," Blake laughed. "This is much more fun than fixing Zords." He threw the Frisbee again, and the wolf leapt in the air to catch it, trotting over to drop it at Blake's feet with a happy wag of his tail. "Wish I had a camera," the Thunder chuckled.

_Tell anyone I like to play 'fetch' and you will find all your videogames have teeth marks embedded in them._

"Hey, not fair!" Blake retorted as he threw the Frisbee again. Cam didn't bother answering, as he was too busy running after the toy. "You like my choice of games," Blake continued when Cam had returned and changed back into a human, still sitting at Blake's feet. "Admit it."

"Okay," the Samurai said readily enough. "I enjoy Halo and the Final Fantasy games, but I'm not too sure about Jak and Dexter, and Animal Crossing is just plain weird."

"Fair enough," Blake allowed, dropping to sit cross-legged beside his brother. He sighed, eyes wandering over the vast, empty field. They said nothing for the longest time, just enjoying the silent companionship.

"Honestly," Cam muttered after a while. "I do have work to do, and I still have to check on Dustin." He looked over at the Bradley. "It's about time we get back."

"You know," Blake said, getting to his feet. "You are a total workaholic."

"Thank you."

"I didn't mean that as a compliment." Blake laughed as he ducked a swing from Cam, and then flinched, reaching around and pawing at his back with a startled, "Ow."

"What's wrong?" Cam asked, eyeing Blake worriedly. The Bradley looked up at him, handing him a dart that had previously been embedded in his back. "What?" Cam murmured, taking the dart and looking over it in confusion. He jumped forward as Blake suddenly collapsed, catching the Navy ranger, and setting him gently on the ground.

The wolf started as something pricked his neck, and he reached up to finger the fletching of another dart protruding from his neck. He quickly pulled it out, but it didn't take long for the darkness to envelop him.

"Oh look, dear Alchmed is finally awake," a voice purred near his ear, and he instinctively flinched away from it. Luke just smiled. "What a shame, and I was having so much fun with the little one too…"

That got Cam's attention, and he straightened glaring at Luke. His hands were tied behind him, and he could feel Blake's trembling form against his back. The wolf opened his mouth to say something, say anything, but nothing would come out. Instead, he was left cringing in pain.

"Oh," Luke said wistfully. "I forgot to mention that didn't I?" he smiled again, crouching down in front of Cam and grabbing his chin, forcing him to meet his eyes. "The collar around your neck won't allow you to speak. And don't even try to get it off, that won't work."

Cam jerked out of his hold, glaring at him angrily. Luke tsked, and then moved around to Blake, who pressed against Cam's back, trying to back away. "Hmm…" Luke said. "The wolf can't talk, and I somehow doubt that the ranger will. How fun."

Luke returned to Cam's view, eyeing him critically. "I could easily kill the two of you now. But where's the fun in that?" he asked, pacing back and forth in thought. "I happen to like tracking you down. I like catching you when you least expect it. I enjoy the feel of the hunt, and while the kill is also enjoyable, the hunt is so much more satisfying."

He crouched down again, this time between the two rangers, and Cam was surprised to find him cutting away the ropes that bound their wrists. "See you later little ones," Luke murmured, and then he disappeared.

Cam turned, reaching out to Blake, who fell into his embrace readily enough. But he was trembling, in pain or fear or whatever…Cam didn't know. And he couldn't ask him. He couldn't even form a telepathic thought without being caused excruciating pain. For a moment, he wondered what this collar was made out of, and how Luke and/or Lothor had come up with the idea of it. Honestly, what use did him not talking serve?

He looked around, gaining his bearings even as he absently comforted Blake. It surprised him to find that they really weren't that far from Storm Chargers. Getting to his feet, and pulling Blake up after him, and they streaked to the store.

He dropped to the ground in the back room, almost surprised that no one had noticed their entrance. Pulling a traumatized Blake onto his lap, he looked down at the teen and wondered what it was that Luke had done to completely break Blake the way he had. He looked up when Shane walked into the room and looked down at them in surprise.

"Dude! Where have ya'll been? We've been looking everywhere for you!" the Red ranger exclaimed. Cam merely looked wearily up at him, and he frowned at the lack of response he was getting. "Guys…what's wrong?" he asked, lowering his voice and crouching down next to them. Blake buried his face in Cam's shoulder, and the Samurai sighed, absently fingering the metal collar around his neck and shaking his head.

Shane seemed to get the message and he stood, pulling both Cam and Blake to their feet. "Let's get back to Ops."

~&~

"I don't get it, man," Cyber Cam said, dropping into a chair next to his creator. "That collar isn't like anything I've ever heard of. Technically, it's not even supposed to exist."

"That's not very comforting," Tori murmured, looking at Cam in concern. The wolf just looked back at her before getting to his feet and walking to Dustin's room to check on the ranger. He returned a few minutes later, grabbing Shane's arm and pulling him into the Yellow ranger's room.

Shane looked down at Dustin, who looked back at him in bleary confusion. "Hey man," Dustin murmured, his voice scratchy. "What's up?"

Shane bit his lip for a moment, glancing over his shoulder at Cam, who just shrugged and walked out of the room. "A lot," the Wind answered truthfully. Dustin frowned, fingering the IV needle in his arm.

"How long have I been out?" he asked, coughing slightly. Shane handed him a glass of water, sitting on the edge of the bed.

"Few days," Shane replied, gaining a startled look from his friend. "You gave us quite a scare there, Dustin. Nearly died on us. Don't do that again."

"What?"

Shane shrugged, looking at the door that Cam had just left. "Things are getting harder. Something happened earlier today that's got Cam unable to talk to us, and Blake in pieces. And we don't know what happened. Even Cam really doesn't know other than the fact that he and Blake were both captured by Luke."

"Cam can't talk?" Dustin asked, sitting up slightly.

Shane shook his head, rubbing at his face. "The collar around his neck keeps him from saying anything. As far as Cyber Cam is concerned, it shouldn't even be able to exist."

"And Blake?"

"We don't know." Shane sighed at the memory of seeing his friend completely broken and trying to hide from the world. "He's not physically hurt…but he…we don't know." There was silence in the room after that, and then Dustin sighed.

"Are we going to be able to win this?" he asked softly, almost as if he hadn't meant to ask at all.

Cam dropped to the ground next to Hunter and Blake, eyeing the Navy ranger in concern. Hunter sighed, shrugging slightly even as he held his brother close, Blake's head buried in the crook of his neck. Cam gave a small, sad smile and Hunter sighed, pulling his wolf-brother close as well.

Cam curled into Hunter's embrace, burying his face in Blake's lap. For the first time in a long while, the Samurai felt like crying.

About half-an-hour later, Tori quietly came into the room, sitting cross-legged next to Hunter and his two sleeping brothers. "Are they going to be alright?" she asked in concern, gently running her fingers through Blake's hair.

Hunter shrugged slightly, careful not to upset his brothers, both of which sprawled in his lap. "I dunno." He sighed. "I don't even know what happened. Cam doesn't know what happened. And Blake isn't speaking…"

Tori bit her lip, shaking her head slightly. "He's strong. They're both strong. They'll make it through this." She paused. "Dustin woke up earlier. He's almost better. Cyber Cam says that he can get out of bed in the next two days. Shane called to let Dustin's parents know that went camping for a few days."

"That's smart," Hunter whispered. "Keep them from worrying too much." He absently fingered the metal around Cam's neck, eyeing it curiously. "You know, there has to be a way to get this off," he said.

"Cyber Cam's working on that," Tori said, also looking at the collar. "Luke got it on somehow, so it obviously has to have a way to come off." She paused, her gaze falling back on Blake. "Something scared him," she whispered.

"Yeah. But what?" Hunter asked with another sigh. "I've never seen Blake like this. Even after Mom and Dad died, he didn't fall apart. I did, but he's the one that kept us together. What could have scared him enough to make him like this?"

"Luke had him," Tori said. "What would Luke do to him to try and break him?" Hunter was silent for a long time, refusing to meet Tori's eyes. She frowned, shaking her head. "You can pull him out of this," she whispered. "I know you can." And then she got to her feet, pausing at the doorway to look back at the three brothers again.

Hunter watched her leave, and then looked down at the two rangers asleep in his lap. "I don't know if I can," he whispered to himself.

"If you can pull him out of this or if you can beat your enemy?" Sensei asked, startling the wolf. Blue eyes turned and met the guinea pig's unwavering gaze. "Is that what you truly think? Because if it is, than you need to rethink the situation."

"Sensei…"

"No, Hunter," Sensei interrupted. "You can only do so much as you think you are able. If you give up hope, than hope is gone." Hunter remained silent, his eyes on the floor. "Now, Hunter, do you believe that you can help your brothers?" Sensei asked quietly.

"I don't know what to do."

"That wasn't the question," Sensei replied. "Do you believe that you can help them?"

For the longest moment, Hunter said nothing and then, "Yes."

"Very good." Sensei turned, making his way to the door. "Than that is all that matters."

"Okay," Shane said to Tori and Dustin, the three of them in the Earth Ninja's room, seated on his bed. Dustin scratched at the large bruise that the IV had left on his arm, glad the Cyber Cam had finally gotten around to taking out the needle. "We've got to figure out what to do."  
"What about Cam and the Thunders?" Dustin asked, motioning that they weren't really around at the moment.

Shane sighed, glancing out the door. "They're…busy at the moment," he muttered. "Besides, this kind of involves them."

"My point," Dustin said. Shane glared half-heartedly at him and then waved it off.

"Shane, what are we going to do?" Tori asked, rubbing at her face. "Blake's out of the fight for now, Hunter's completely worried about him, Cam…Cam isn't doing so well either. What are we going to do?"

"Get rid of Luke."

"What?" Both Dustin and Tori asked in reply to Shane's simple answer.

"It's the obvious answer, isn't it?" Shane asked back. "We were doing fine when we were only fighting Lothor." He paused. "Kaido and the Ashnazi threw things off a bit. But Luke…he's just tearing everything apart."

"So we have to get rid of him," Dustin said softly.

"Exactly," Shane replied.

Tori shook her head. "And how do we do that?" she asked. "He's managed to catch us off guard every time we come across him. He's targeting Hunter, Blake and Cam. And this isn't really our fight."

"Of course it's our fight," Shane said, his dark eyes narrowing.

"It became our fight the second the Ashnazi began hunting down our friends," Dustin said, his voice barely above a whisper.

Tori nodded. "Right," she muttered. "Because nobody harms our friends without facing the consequences."

"See," Shane grinned. "You've got it now." He looked around the small room. "Because our friends are our family, and nobody is allowed to hurt our family." He sighed. "So, with that logical reasoning, we have to get rid of Luke. And the Ashnazi."

"After that," Dustin smiled. "We'll only have to deal with Lothor. And we all know that that's a lot easier than those reincarnated freaks."

"Although, getting rid of Luke won't be that easy," Tori muttered. "In fact, it's going to be very, very hard."

Shane frowned, looking down at the blankets beneath him. "As long as we survive," he replied quietly. "We can't let Blake or the wolves go through anymore pain. So we need to get rid of Luke and the Ashnazi for them."

"For our friends," Tori breathed with a hint of a smile.

"For our family," Dustin corrected.


	20. Chapter 20

Black paws were delicately placed among the remains of what had been Ninja Ops. Debris shifted and the wolf sat back on its haunches, dark eyes peering through the shadows. Shane and Dustin had already helped to clear out the last of the working computers, but those had been few, and the entire cavern was nothing more than strewn rock now.

That last attack—Lothor's final move—had taken them all by surprise.

But they had succeeded; Lothor had fallen and the schools had been returned to their previous state.

Can, though, couldn't help but feel a little cheated. The metal collar around his neck had been cracked during the fight, but had yet to come off. Cyber Cam had been so close to figuring out how to get rid of the thing when he and the rest of Ops had been destroyed. So, Cam remained mute.

To some degree, at least, as the crack in the metal had allowed the wolf to regain his telepathy. Which was useful as the Ashnazi were still plaguing Blue Bay Harbor. Luke seemed rather upset by Lothor's impatience that had ultimately resulted in his downfall.

Cam rested his head on his paws, giving a soft sigh as he thought about the Ashnazi and Luke. Blake had fought well and hard beside them when it came to Lothor, but he was still prone to panic if he was left alone. And he had yet to tell them why.

"Cameron?"

That was his father's voice.

He didn't really care to answer.

Sensei Watanabe, no longer imprisoned in the body of a guinea pig, came down the stairs and crouched next to his son. "Cameron, are you okay?"

_I don't know._

"What is there not to know, my son?" Sensei asked gently. "Lothor is gone and the school has been returned."

_And with it, the Thunder Academy,_ Cam replied. _So where does that leave the Bradleys?_

Sensei frowned. "I will not make them choose between families, Cameron."

_You're not the one I'm worried about._

Sensei's frown deepened. Cam had a point there. "Come," he finally said. "Let us see to the other students."

Dustin stretched, giving a half-hearted grin. "So, man, what now?" he asked Shane, who was standing nearby, watching the milling students. "We've graduated, top of our class, and have been offered teaching positions, and there's no evil alien uncle trying to take over the world."

"No," Tori murmured, frowning. "But we still haven't managed to get rid of Luke yet." She paused, shaking her head as she gave a sigh. "And what with the Thunder Academy being back, getting to Hunter and Blake is going to be nigh on impossible."

_Because we all know that Sensei Omino would rather you die before taking help from a Wind._ Cam's voice held a certain amount of venom as he joined the three Winds, dark eyes watching the students from behind thin panes of glass. Startled, the three turned to gaze at him and he scowled. _They're my brothers. Of course I'm worried._

"Right," Shane said, running a hand through his hair. Other students stopped talking as they walked past the small group, eyeing them warily. As it seemed, those that had been trapped in the stasis bubbles didn't know what had happened on Earth while they were gone; they had no idea about the Power Rangers or who they had been.

All they knew was that those four hadn't been on Lothor's ship with them. And that they had graduated—top of the class—when they hadn't been deserving (one of which having never even trained ) of it before the Evil Space Alien Incident.

One such student was Alex Sangua, who had just stopped in front of them, a cocky grin on his face as he faced Cam. "Well, well, well. If it isn't the Sensei's son." Cam just stared at him, ignoring Tori, Dustin and Shane's sighs and eye rolling behind him.

"Where were you when Lothor attacked?" Alex asked snidely. "I managed to take out four Kelzaks. Much more than you I'm sure."

Cam blinked, rolled his eyes and walked away, the three winds quick to follow, much to Alex's annoyance. "Dude," Dustin groaned. "Is he, like, always like that?"

_Pretty much._

"That sucks," Shane added.

_Pretty much._

"Cameron."

Cam looked up at the sound of his father's voice, making his way towards the Sensei. _Yes?_

Sensei Watanabe gave a small smile, bordering on the fine line between amused and disapproving. "Please try to not start any fights with the other students."

_If there are any fights, I won't be the one instigating them,_ Cam replied with a small smirk. He then sobered. _Dad. If Omino makes my brothers choose, they'll be allowed here, right?_

"I'll welcome them with open arms, Cameron," Sensei said solemnly.

_Yes. But so very few will._

Cam's father frowned, shaking his head. "I cannot tell others what to think, my son. You know that very well."

_I know, father. But it's hard enough without our own school shunning them. They're my brothers._

Sensei sighed, eyes compassionate. "We don't yet know if Omino will force them to choose between schools, Cameron. Have some faith."

_It's patience I lack._

"We all want to hear from them too," Shane said from behind him, clapping a hand on the wolf's shoulder. "I mean, it's so strange that they're not here with us, man."

"Got that right," Dustin mumbled, rubbing at his chest with a small frown.

_Dustin?_ Cam asked worriedly. _You alright?_

"Fine," the former yellow-ranger answered. "Just a little sore."

"Take it easy, Dustin," Sensei ordered in a very fatherly manner. Dustin hesitated for a split second before nodding.

There was a short moment of companionable silence before Cam's eyes narrowed behind his glasses and his lip curled in a silent snarl. The others all looked at him questioningly and he replied with a simple, _Let's go._

They had Thunder Ninjas to retrieve.

"You have disgraced us," Omino snapped, stalking in front of the two silent ex-rangers standing in the center of the school's front lawn. "You accepted help from the Winds. You lived with them!"

"Would you rather we had starved? Or been destroyed?" Hunter asked back, just short of being snappish back.

"It would have been better than mingling with them ."

Blake said nothing, his brown eyes trained on the ground in front of him. Hunter stood slightly in front of him, shielding him from the man that they had once seen as a father-figure. The wolf fought the urge to growl, to snarl, to do anything but stand there and take the words that were being thrown at them.

The Winds had saved them. They would have died without them.

And he couldn't forget it.

Apparently, however, neither could their Sensei. "Choose."

"What?" Hunter asked, startled. But he knew what his sensei had said, and he knew the meaning behind it. So he called for his other brother, while hoping that perhaps he had misunderstood.

"Choose." Omino stood his ground, arms crossed, eyes hard. "It's either your friends ," he spat the word with such venom that Hunter nearly flinched and Blake did. "Or your school and family."

And then there were startled whispers and murmurs flying throughout the courtyard. Out of the corner of his eye, Hunter saw Cam walking steadily forward, ignoring the glares shot his way. And he caught the scent of the other three Winds on the wind. They were standing at the end of the path, knowing they weren't welcome on Thunder territory, and yet not willing to leave without knowing that their friends were going to be okay.

_Thank you for coming._

Cam glanced his way, placing a steadying hand against Blake's shoulder as he leveled a narrow glare at Omino. _You're family. We'll always be here._

Omino snarled something that they couldn't make out, canine hearing or not. "Choose. Show them who you really care for."

"Cam?" Blake murmured, his voice trembling slightly. "Can we go home now?" The hand on his shoulder tightened and Blake nodded, turning away from his sensei. Hunter gazed at Omino for a long moment, blue eyes unreadable, and then turned away as well, gently leading his younger brother towards the three waiting Winds.

Cam remained, glaring at Omino with such ferocity that Shane was tempted to call him back. But the younger Watanabe finally turned away, following the Bradleys, still stately ignoring the whispers and glares that tried to penetrate through his cold, outer shield.

Omino watched them go, shock written all over his features. He surely hadn't expected the two Thunders to choose the Winds over the school that had practically raised them.

_You shouldn't have made them choose._

It was a voice that echoed through his head. A voice that definitely was not his own.

_You shouldn't have made them choose between families. Because that's not what families do._

~&~

They looked horrible. Kanoi Watanabe noticed that as soon as they stepped into the courtyard. Both Bradleys looked as though they were ready to fall apart. And they probably would have, had Cam not been leading them forward, his presence solid and sure, and had Shane, Tori and Dustin not been behind them, watching their backs for them in this unwelcome territory.

Blake was trembling slightly, his arms wrapped around him in a semblance of a hug. Hunter seemed to have just shut down, his face blank and unreadable. They ignored the whispers, the mutters, the glares of the other Winds, or at least they tried too. But even Kanoi was finding it hard to think over the comments.

"They're Thunders, and they dare to come here?" one of the other senseis standing behind him practically snarled.

"They aren't welcome," another added.

"Coming here? What were they expecting? We aren't a charity."

"They won't be here long. I'll make sure of it."

Kanoi whirled around, his face contorted with anger, which startled the other senseis, as they had never before seen him lose control of his emotions. "If I hear one more derogatory comment about either of those boys, I can promise you that you won't be here long."

Their jaws, which had nearly hit the floor, all snapped shut and stayed shut as Kanoi turned back around in time to nod to his son, who had reached them. Cam nodded back, frowning, and stepped out of the way. Hunter and Blake both refused to meet Kanoi's eyes, and the Sensei took a few steps forward to wrap his arms around them. "Oh my boys," he murmured sadly. "Oh my sons."

They tensed slightly when he said that, and Kanoi got the feeling that he hadn't been the first Sensei to utter those words. But then the two of them relaxed so completely against him that he was surprised that neither of them burst into tears right there. He continued to hold them, offering what little comfort he could while Cam and the three other ex-rangers stood silent and still, glaring at the rest of the world and the hostility that raged against them.

"You can stay in Cameron's room until we can prepare another one for the two of you," Kanoi murmured when he finally stepped back.

Cam stepped forward, heaving a small sigh as he glanced around at the still glaring students and staff. _Perhaps they should just stay with me permanently. It might be safer._

Sensei frowned slightly at that comment. "I won't allow them to come to any harm."

Cam raised an eyebrow. _I'm not worried about my brothers, Dad,_ he said solemnly. _Then again, I'm not too worried about anyone that would dare try to harm them. They'll deserve whatever they get._

Sensei tried to continue frowning but finally gave up, shaking his head with a small smile. "Do you have anything with you?"

Hunter shook his head. "Everything we had was in Ops when it was destroyed. Everything else is back at the Thunder Academy."

Kanoi had to hand it to him; that boy could control his emotions like the best of them when he wanted to. "Cam and the others will take you two shopping tomorrow."

Cam would have groaned had he been capable of audible sounds. As it was, he allowed himself the leniency to whine. Just a little. _I hate shopping._

"So do I," Hunter grunted.

Blake snickered softly, and Kanoi had to smile. "I know," the Sensei smiled.

Cam narrowed his eyes. You're evil.

"And yet, so far above Lothor, man," Shane said as he joined them. He threw an arm around both Bradleys' shoulders and gently pushed them towards the door to the school. "Come on, let's get you two settled."

Hunter paused before allowing himself to be dragged away, looking back to Kanoi and for just a small instant allowing the older man to see the sorrow, the pain and the gratitude in his blue eyes. "Thank you."

"You're family," Kanoi replied evenly. "We'll always be here," he finished, purposely repeating his son's earlier words. Hunter gave a small smile, just a slight tilt of his lips really, and disappeared down the hall.

Blake dropped face first onto Cam's bed, burrowing his face in the Samurai's pillow. Cam let him be, sighing softly as he turned to gaze solemnly at his wolf-brother. _You alright?_

"No."

Well, Cam mused, at least he was being honest.

Tori sat down on the edge of Cam's bed, rubbing Blake's back comfortingly when the navy Thunder's breath hitched. "They shouldn't have done that to you," she commented, voice just shy of being harsh with her anger.

Hunter slid down the wall and rested his head against his forearms, drawing his knees up to his chest. "Doesn't matter. What's done is done."

Dustin and Shane both sat down, silently offering their support. Cam hovered for a moment before suddenly changing, shaking out his black fur in a very doglike manner before trotting forward and shoving his muzzle under Hunter's chin. Hunter snorted softly, pushing the wolf away. "I'll be fine, Alchmed."

_You're always fine, Aricudo,_ Cam retorted. _You'll be proclaiming you're fine while lying on your deathbed._

"He's got you pegged, man," Shane said, smiling slightly. Hunter merely shrugged and Cam gave an annoyed huff, jumping up onto the bed to curl up against Blake. A few moments later, a tan wolf joined him on the other side, having waited patiently for Tori to move out of the way. The Water ninja smiled. "Hm. It seems that Cam and Hunter have decided to skip out on tomorrow's shopping trip by instead taking a road-trip to LA for some much needed time away from the schools. Alchmed and Aricudo, however, have deemed it time to return to their pack and protect their little brother."

_Sounds good to me,_ Hunter mumbled as Blake turned to bury his face in his older brother's fur.

Cam stretched over Blake's shoulder, his long pink tongue darting out to lick at what little could be seen of the navy Thunder's cheek. It tasted of tears and Cam rested his head on the teen's shoulder, brown eyes flicking up to Hunter. _Remind me to get online and order some souvenirs from LA later._

"You two are going to be staying with Blake, aren't you?" Shane asked, getting to his feet and brushing himself off. He then turned and offered Dustin a hand, waiting for one of the wolves to respond.

_Yes. _Hunter whined softly, nudging at Blake, trying to get him out of the ball he had managed to curl himself into. _How long do you expect us to stay as wolves?_

"How long do you two intend to stay on your 'road-trip'?" Tori asked back. She shrugged. "Doesn't matter to us. But remember that Sensei is probably expecting Cam to help out with security."

"And you're probably going to be put in charge of classes," Shane added, eyeing the two Bradleys. He sighed. "With all this hullabaloo, it almost makes me wonder why Blake didn't take Factory Blue up with their offer."

Dustin lightly smacked the wind's shoulder. "Dude. Do ya even need to ask? What with Luke out there, it's, like, obvious."

Unable to get Blake to respond to the wolf, Hunter suddenly switched back, hauling his little brother into his lap and wrapping his arms about him protectively. He murmured softly to the teen, and Blake merely curled against him, burying his face in his chest and grasping the crimson shirt with white-knuckled hands. Cam whined, pressing his head against the Thunder's back in an effort of comfort.

"I think we'll leave you three now," Tori murmured. And then she completely surprised everyone else by bending and kissing the top of Blake's, Hunter's and Cam's heads. There was a short pause and then the three Winds left. And the two Thunders and the Samurai were left in silence.

~&~

Blake yawned, slapping Dustin a hive-five as they met in the cafeteria. "Feelin' better, dude?" the earth ninja asked companionably.

Blake gave a small, self-conscious smile. "Yeah. Thanks." He glanced around for a moment, spotting Shane and Tori sitting alone at a table across the room.

Dustin caught the look and shrugged. "We're not very well liked," he explained. There was a small frown. "Less so now." The Wind looked about distractedly, much like his usual self. "Dude. Like, where's the rest of the pack?"

"Waiting for food," Blake replied honestly, snagging Dustin's elbow to lead him to the kitchen. "Please tell me there's some fresh meat here."

There was, and Dustin helped by grabbing the two of them breakfast while Blake wrestled the entire brisket from the freezer. It was fresh enough that it wasn't quite frozen yet, and was still dripping blood. Blake grimaced and looked around before setting his burden down on a large platter. "Seriously hope no one was planning on using that for dinner."

Dustin blinked, looking over at him with his usual perplexed look. "Dude, Sensei's not gonna care either way."

"True," Blake shrugged, looking down at the meat. "Good. Because as much as they don't like it, both Alchmed and Aricudo need fresh meat. Usually they go hunting, but they haven't had time and now their both running on empty."

Dustin just grinned and they made their way through the crowded cafeteria, ignoring the odd looks and pointed whispers as they joined Shane and Tori at their lone table. Blake set the platter on the ground, straightened, and gave a piercing whistle that managed to silence the entire room. And then he sat down and calmly began eating. Conversations broke out again, only to be silenced when two large canines raced into the room and tore into the meat with a ferocity that the Wind ex-rangers had yet to see outside of fighting. They, however, didn't bother to acknowledge it.

"So, we're going shopping for you and your brother today, right?" Tori asked Blake, her blue eyes sparkling. The tan wolf gave a small, amused huff before ripping free another chunk of meat and Blake resisted the urge to kick him.

"You seem to be enjoying this way too much, Tor," Shane mumbled.

Tori would have replied had a shadow not suddenly descended upon them. They looked up to see a female water ninja that was a few years ahead of Tori. Or had been, as all the ex-rangers now completely outranked the other students enough that they had accepted positions as teachers.

She was glaring at Blake and somehow managing to look disgusted at the same time. "You can't keep pets here! Especially dogs!" she demanded angrily. Blake just blinked up at her as though he hadn't understood. And then the girl did something extremely stupid; she reached for the wolves' food.

The cafeteria once again went completely silent as the water ninja ended up on the ground, pinned by a growling, snapping wolf. The black wolf bared his fangs, hackles raised as he guarded the food while his alpha took the forefront. Blake, Tori, Shane and Dustin had all remained seated throughout the exchange, not looking startled in the least.

Hunter growled again, removing himself from the ninja and returning to his meal. After a moment, Cam followed suit.

"Those aren't dogs," Shane finally said, also returning his attention to his food.

Blake smirked. "And they definitely aren't pets."

The ninja sputtered for a moment and then shrieked, "Those things should be shot!"

At that, all four ex-rangers at the table surged to their feet, faces calm but eyes flashing angrily at the same time. "You will not touch my wolves," Blake stated firmly.

"Oh, like you could stop me, Thunder," the girl sneered, quickly getting to her feet. Others were joining her now, obviously siding with one of their own rather than the Thunder and his outcast friends.

Blake raised an eyebrow, crossing his arms across his chest. It was a stance that the other rangers knew well, but one that they rarely associated with him. It was more attributed to his brother.

The wolves were growling again, hackles raised as they crouched nearer to the ground, preparing themselves to leap in order to protect their pack. "I could," Blake murmured. "Easily." And it wasn't boasting when he said it, but plain and simple fact.

"You don't want to fight us," Dustin muttered, looking solemn and serious even as he carefully watched the two wolves. "So back off."

It was a rather large air ninja that threw the first punch at Blake. He was also the first ninja to find fangs at his throat and claws ripping through his uniform before the wolf was pulled away. Blake locked his arms around Cam's neck, ignoring the blood dripping from gleaming teeth as the wolf snarled. Hunter continued to pace, circling the group of ex-rangers and keeping the crowd away as the air ninja scrabbled back, hand held to his bleeding throat. The wounds weren't serious, hardly even superficial, but they were thought-provoking.

Cam surged against Blake in his rage, but when the navy Thunder grunted with the pain of strained muscles, the wolf suddenly whirled around and pressed his forehead to Blake's shoulder, ears flat against his head. Blake sighed and ran his hands through the thick, dark fur before latching his fingers around that annoying collar. "Yes, I know you're sorry. And yes, I forgive you," he whispered.

Hunter circled around and stopped next to his little brother, settling back on his haunches before pressing his head against Blake's side. The navy Thunder laughed, scratching behind his ears and watching the other Winds. Tori, Shane and Dustin stood nearby, also watching, and looking completely unruffled despite the whole fiasco.

Because honestly, what were a bunch of amateur ninjas when compared to evil space ninjas and Ashnazi?

"I heard that Cam and Hunter left?" Sensei Watanabe said as he walked calmly into the circle and absently patted Hunter's head.

"That's right, Sensei," Tori said cheerfully, as though there weren't a bunch of students that looked as though they wanted to lynch everyone in their small group. "They apparently decided they needed a break."

"And you did not go with them, Blake?" Sensei asked, turning to the Thunder. Blake got to his feet, giving the two wolves pointed looks. "Ah yes. That makes sense," Sensei said, also looking at the wolves. "Just don't let them kill anyone without reason." And he turned away, scratching behind Cam's ears as he went.

Dustin sighed, running a hand through his hair and looking so much more like himself. Weary, but his usual air-headed self all the same. "Totally up for some rounds at the track." He glanced at Blake. "Wanna come, bro?"

"Sure."

And they left the Winds to glower at their retreating backs.

As it turned out, Tori wouldn't allow them to go to the track until after they had finished shopping. By that time, Blake was tired enough that he only did a couple laps before joining Cam, Hunter, Tori and Shane on the grass.

"Sensei told me to tell you that both you and Hunter have graduated from our school," Tori said softly, watching as Dustin practiced his freestyle. "He also asked if the two of you want to teach with us."

"Seriously?" Blake responded, falling onto his back. "They already hate us."

"I know," Shane mumbled. "But it might be a good idea." He shrugged. "What with Luke around."

Blake shuddered and Hunter stood from where he had been sprawled, trotting over to his little brother. _You never did tell us what he did to you._ His voice was quiet, intended only for Blake, Cam and himself. The black wolf rose, shook out his fur and joined them.

Blake covered his face with one arm. "Nothing, really. He just…talked."

_About?_ Cam inquired. Because whatever Luke had "talked" about had managed to leave Blake in pieces.

"Me," Blake murmured uncomfortably. "You. Hunter. Ed. Sensei Omino. Everyone."

And suddenly Hunter was licking his face and Blake had to push him away. But the wolf didn't go far, draping his head across the Thunder's chest. Cam sprawled across his thighs, and Blake found himself unable to move. Shane and Tori were watching curiously, not having known what the three were talking about.

_I think we'll take Sensei up on his offer, Tori,_ Hunter suddenly said, startling her, as his blue eyes closed in contentment. _Keep our little family together._

"Well good," Tori smiled. "Because it's so much easier to date Blake that way."

If Hunter had been human, he would have raised an eyebrow. As it was, he merely huffed. Cam, however, snickered, and wasn't that an interesting sound to have echoing in your head. Blake rolled his eyes. "Somebody throw a Frisbee so Cam will get off me."

Cam growled softly, nipping at Blake's shin. _I'm pretty sure I remember you saying that you wouldn't tell the others that._

"What?" Blake asked, blinking innocently. "That you like to play fetch?"

"Dude?" Dustin asked as he joined them, breathing heavily and holding a hand to his chest. "You like fetch?"

Cam leapt to his feet, placing a paw against Dustin's hip and hoisting himself up onto his hind legs. _Sit down and tell me what's wrong with you,_ he ordered, jabbing his nose against the earth ninja's jaw.

Dustin sighed, sitting on the ground and pushing the insistent wolf away from him. "It's nothing, alright? It just hurts to breathe sometimes."

_And that's nothing?_ Cam asked incredulously. _If that's nothing, than Lothor's secret passion was dancing ballet with pink tutus._

Shane raised an eyebrow. "Actually, knowing Lothor…"

_Oh, shut up,_ Cam snapped. He turned back to Dustin expectantly.

"Dude, the fight with Lothor, like, hurt. Okay?" Dustin muttered. He was staring at the ground, absently using his ninja powers to build little tiny buildings. A map of the city. "And I haven't, like, had much time to get over it all anyway."

_Take it easy, Dustin,_ Cam ordered, much more insistently than his father had the night before. _We won't allow one of our pack to be in pain._

Tori threw an arm about Dustin's shoulder. "You start classes tomorrow, right?" she asked.

"Yeah," Dustin said, grateful for the change in subject. "Do you?"

"Shane and I both," she replied. She thought for a moment. "Blake too, probably. We'll have to wait for Cam and Hunter to 'get back' before they start though."

_Good_ Hunter mumbled. _I need a vacation._

"We all need vacations," Blake retorted, sighing as he realized that his brother was falling asleep on his chest.

"No rest for the righteous," Shane grinned. "Come on, let's get back to the school."

Two days later saw Hunter back as a human and lying on the grass in the courtyard next to Blake. The younger Bradley was sleeping, and Hunter was absently playing with the grass. His first class hadn't gone so well, the air ninjas he was set to teach not wanting to take orders from a Thunder.

It had taken a bolt of lightning to make them take him seriously.

Blake's first class had been much the same. In fact, all the ex-rangers had had to prove their worth. Cam was the only one not teaching as he wasn't really a ninja, but a samurai. And that Alex Sangua kid seemed to really enjoy harassing him, not knowing that Cam could easily take him.

Hunter sighed in annoyance as none other than Alex blocked his sunlight, sneering down at him. "Is there something you want?" the Thunder asked politely, not bothering to get up.

"Yeah," Alex snapped. "I want you and that brother of yours to leave. You're making our school look bad."

Hunter didn't respond other than raising an eyebrow, and Alex took the initiative to step on the Bradley's hand. His soft hiss of pain woke Blake, who blinked blearily at the both of them.

It was Cam, however, that drove Alex away, stalking forward with a hard, cold look on his face. Hunter slowly pulled his hand back, content to watch as Cam just stood silently in front of Alex, arms crossed. A small crowd had gathered, all of them betting that the 'geek' was about to get beat up by the school's 'greatest' student.

So it was to their surprise that Alex ended up on the ground with a sword to his throat when he threw the first punch. Hunter sighed wearily, getting to his feet along with Blake. "Cam's not a ninja, Sangua," he stated calmly, placing a hand on Cam's shoulder. The wolf didn't waver, the sword still at the other ninja's throat.

Blake absently wondered where Cam had pulled that from when he joined his two brothers. "He's a samurai." Glancing at his watch the navy Thunder grimaced. "Why didn't you wake me up, bro?" he asked. "I've got a date with Tori in like, half-an-hour."

Hunter grinned. "Didn't know you needed that long to primp, bro," he replied. Cam rolled his eyes, removing the sword from Alex's neck, but not turning away. He'd had far too much experience with fighting Lothor and the Ashnazi to ever turn his back on an enemy. Blake, much to the amusement of Hunter and Cam, gave a frustrated groan and ran off.

_Dustin's got a class in an hour,_ Cam informed Hunter as they slowly made their way back to the main building, ignoring the stares of all the students. _I told him I'd help out._

"Okay…and?" Hunter asked, nodding to Sensei Watanabe as they passed.

_You can join us, dolt,_ Cam replied, rolling his eyes.

Hunter growled playfully at the insult, but didn't retaliate. And so they continued their banter for the hour, joining up with Dustin to help him teach his class.

It was halfway through the class that all three ex-rangers suddenly stopped and looked around. "Sensei? What's wrong?" a student asked as Dustin suddenly whirled around. A wall of rock sprung from the earth in time to deflect a volley of arrows.

"Ashnazi!" Dustin yelped, turning back to the class and motioning them towards the main building. "Go!"

_Blake and Tori!_Cam cried as he turned. _They're in Blue Bay!_

"Go!" Hunter told him, and Cam went, startling the other students when he transformed into a large black wolf mid-leap.

Shane met them halfway to the main house, launching a blast of wind at the troop of Ashnazi behind them. And then the three ex-rangers set in for a fight, ninja students tentatively doing the same behind them.

Cam raced through the city as a wolf, but found that he had hardly made it in time. Tori was busy fighting off five Ashnazi, and Blake…Blake was going hand to hand with Luke. There was a cut across the length of his face, blood pouring down his neck, and what looked to be a stab wound on his shoulder, but other than that the navy Thunder was holding his own.

Cam barreled into Luke, knocking him aside. However, Luke was prepared for the next lunge, pushing him back. What he wasn't expecting, was the bolt of lightning that blasted him from a clear sky.

Luke fell, twitching, and the Ashnazi ran. Cam circled their foe's body, relaxing when it became apparent that he was dead. "Okay," Blake said from beside him. "That was just slightly anti-climatic." He eyed the wolf for a moment. "How'd you know to come?"

_Ashnazi at the Academy!_ Cam yelped, having almost forgotten about them. He whirled around and Tori and Blake were at his heels as he ran down the street. At the edge of town he changed back into a human and the three streaked to the school.

They arrived in time for Blake to catch Dustin as he stumbled back, an arrow through his shoulder. Rather than giving up, however, the earth ninja just snarled and ripped the weapon free, the earth beneath the Ashnazis' feet giving a violent upheaval. The students had always been taught not to take human life, and so were just trying to subdue their opponents. As such, they were entirely shocked when a sword bit cleanly through one of the attackers' necks, separating head from body. And they were even more surprised to find that it had been Cameron Watanabe that killed the man.

Cam paused for a moment, latching fingers slicked with other men's blood around the collar at his neck. With a violent tug, the metal grated free, leaving bloody furrows in its wake as he ripped it from his neck. "Luke's dead!" he yelled about the fighting to the other ex-rangers.

"Finally!" Hunter cried back. Blake, Tori and Shane linked hands and called on their elements, creating something that they had never before tried. The wind whipped up and the sky darkened right before rain and lightning beat down on them from above. They had called a full-out thunderstorm to confuse their enemies. The lightning lashed down, striking quite a few of the Ashnazi in much the same way as it had done to Luke.

Cam backed up until he was back to back with Hunter, a feral grin on his face. And then, as one, both he and his wolf-brother threw back their heads and howled, the sound stopping ninja and Ashnazi alike in their combat. With the wind howling about them, adding to the ethereal sound of the wolves' call, the Ashnazi fled.

Two wolves, the tan one's fur cracking with visible electricity, took chase, tearing down any of the ones they could get their fangs into. Blake stumbled, falling wearily against Tori, and Dustin allowed Shane to help support him as he nearly fell, his face contorted in pain. The four ex-rangers looked around, and to their astonishment found that, although plenty injured, not one of the ninjas had been killed.

The storm died around them, and the two wolves returned. And suddenly Blake was laughing. "It's over," he said in jubilant disbelief. "It's finally over."

And they were all grinning. Shane gave a relieved sigh. "The end."


	21. Epilogue

Hunter sat back with a sigh, relaxing as he watched his nephew play with the large black wolf. The one-year-old had enough energy for ten children, but that didn't stop the crimson Thunder from offering to baby-sit whenever Blake and Tori needed a night out.

Besides, Cam loved the kid almost as much as he did. Of course, Cam was about to be a father himself. His wife, Kim Heart, a girl he had met in Angel Grove, was due in the next two months.

Hunter grinned, hearing his own wife come out onto the porch despite her efforts to sneak up on him. "Hey love," he said softly.

"Darn you and your wolf hearing," she complained good-naturedly. And she bent over to give him a kiss on the cheek. "Aric doing okay?" she asked. She always seemed to get a smile from the baby's name, Aric having been lovingly named after Aricudo.

"Trini, baby," Hunter rolled his eyes, motioning to their nephew. "Does it look like he's in any danger?"

At that exact moment, Aric was riding on Cam's back, squealing with joy. Cam stopped and looked up when Shane, Dustin and Marah walked through the gate and into the yard.

"Yo!" Dustin called, giving Marah's cheek a peck before racing up the steps to the large house where Hunter, Blake, Cam and their families all lived. As it turned out, the pack couldn't stand to be away from each other for very long. Shane and Kelly lived next door, and Dustin and Marah lived right across the street. "Dude, that race was, like, so totally wicked!"

"I know, right!" Hunter replied just as excited as they lapsed into a conversation about the latest moto-x competition.

You know, it was good to be in such a large family.

It was great to be loved.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This thing is so old. And so poorly written in comparison to my newer stuff. Hence why it is in the long, long process of being rewritten. Hopefully better.


End file.
